Bandai facts for kids
Logo used since 1983
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Bandai's corporate headquarters in Taitō, Tokyo
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Native name
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株式会社バンダイ
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Romanized name
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Kabushiki-gaisha Bandai |
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Formerly
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Bandai-ya |
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| Industry | Entertainment |
| Founded | July 5, 1950 |
| Founder | Naoharu Yamashina |
| Headquarters | Taitō, Tokyo, Japan |
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Key people
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Masaru Kawaguchi (president) |
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| Brands |
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Operating income
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 ¥21.7 billion (2019) |
| ¥242.8 billion (2019) |
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Number of employees
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851 (January 2021) |
| Parent | Bandai Namco Holdings (2005–present) |
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| Footnotes / references |
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Bandai Co., Ltd. is a big Japanese company that makes and sells toys. Its main office is in Taitō, Tokyo, Japan. Bandai also has offices in other countries, like America and the UK.
Since 2005, Bandai has been the toy-making part of Bandai Namco Holdings. This group is now the second largest toy company in the world! From 1981 to 2001, Bandai also made video game consoles.
Bandai was started by Naoharu Yamashina on July 5, 1950. He was a veteran from World War II. It began as a small part of a company that sold fabrics. At first, they sold metal toys and rubber swimming rings. Later, they made metal cars and airplane models.
In 1961, the company changed its name to Bandai. They became very successful with action figures from the anime show Astro Boy.
Contents
Bandai's Logos Over Time
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1959–1975
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1983–present
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The Story of Bandai
How Bandai Started and Grew (1947–1968)
In 1947, Naoharu Yamashina worked for a company that sold fabrics. He had studied business and was a soldier in World War II. His eye was hurt by a grenade during the war. The fabric business was not doing well after the war in Japan.
A neighbor told him that the toy industry could make a lot of money. Naoharu Yamashina became very interested. He and his wife went to Tokyo to learn about making toys. They worked hard to start a small toy part within the fabric business.
On July 5, 1950, Yamashina took full control of the toy part. It became its own company called Bandai-ya . The name "Bandai" means "eternally unchanging" in Japanese.
Bandai-ya sold dolls, metal toys, and rubber swimming rings. Their first toy was the Rhythm Ball, a beach ball with a bell inside. It had some problems at first. But Bandai-ya kept making better toys, like metal cars and airplane models. Many of these toys were sent to other countries, like the United States. They were some of the first "Made In Japan" products sold outside Japan.
As the company made more money, Bandai-ya grew bigger. They built new shipping and storage places in 1953. They also started departments for research and checking toy quality. In 1955, they opened a factory called Waraku Works to make more toys.
In the same year, Bandai-ya started the first quality check system in the toy industry. The first toy to pass this check was a 1956 Toyopet Crown model car. This car was also the first Bandai-ya product with a guarantee. The company wanted to have a friendly image. They made a new logo, slogan, and TV ads to show their good quality toys.
In July 1961, Bandai-ya changed its name to Bandai. At the same time, they started selling toys in other countries. They opened Bandai Overseas Supply in New York City.
Bandai became very successful in 1963. They started making action figures based on the anime show Astro Boy. Because these toys sold so well, Bandai changed how it did business. They started to help fund new TV shows. They would then advertise their own action figures and costumes during these shows.
Another very popular toy line was action figures of Ultraman characters. These were popular because the TV show was a big hit. In July 1966, Bandai released Crazy Foam. This was a spray that made bubbles. They sold 2.4 million units in just three months because of a big advertising campaign.
Other popular Bandai toys included Thunderbird electric vehicles and Water Motor bath toys. The Naughty Flipper toy won a gold medal in New York in 1968. In 1969, Bandai bought another factory to make even more toys.
Growing Bigger and Mobile Suit Gundam (1971–1983)
Bandai kept growing throughout the 1970s. In 1970, they teamed up with a model car company called Tonka. They formed a new company called Tonka Japan K.K. This was part of Bandai's plan to work with more foreign companies.
In 1971, Bandai started a new company called Popy. Popy focused on making toys based on popular cartoon characters. Bandai became a major toy company in Japan. They competed with companies like Takara and Epoch. But Bandai wanted to sell their toys all over the world to become even more famous.
Bandai America Inc. was started in 1978 to sell toys in the US. In the 1980s, Bandai introduced Spacewarp. These were kits to build your own toy roller coasters for rolling balls.
In May 1980, Makoto Yamashina, the son of the founder, became the new president of Bandai. His father, Naoharu Yamashina, became the chairman. Makoto Yamashina changed many things at Bandai. He hired younger employees with new ideas. He also changed how the company sold toys. Instead of selling through other companies, Bandai started selling directly to stores.
In July 1980, Bandai launched the 'Gundam Plastic Model'. These models were based on the animated series Mobile Suit Gundam. This started the very popular Gunpla line of model kits.
Entering the Video Game World (1983–1989)
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In 1985, Bandai became one of the first companies to make games for Nintendo's Family Computer. One of their first games was Tag Team Match: MUSCLE. This game was based on a manga comic and sold over one million copies.
Bandai also made the Family Trainer Pad, which was called the Power Pad outside Japan. This mat also sold very well. They released games like Athletic World and Stadium Events for the NES.
Since the 1980s, Bandai has been the top toy company in Japan. They have the main licenses for many popular characters. These include Ultraman, Kamen Rider, Gundam, and the Super Sentai and Power Rangers series. Bandai even helped create the Power Rangers series.
In February 1989, Bandai bought a company that made arcade games called Coreland. They changed its name to Banpresto. This became Bandai's division for coin-operated games. In the early 1990s, Bandai also published games for Nintendo in the UK. One example was Street Fighter II for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.
Joining Forces with Namco (2005–Present)
In 2005, Bandai joined with a game developer and arcade company called Namco. Now, Bandai is part of Bandai Namco Holdings. After some changes in 2006, Bandai leads the group's Toys and Hobby business.
In February 2018, Bandai's US division and Saban Brands announced a change. Bandai would no longer make Power Rangers toys after Spring 2019. Another toy company, Hasbro, would take over this license. However, Bandai Japan still makes toys for Super Sentai, which is the Japanese show that Power Rangers uses footage from.
A sister company, Bandai Spirits, was started on February 15, 2018. This company now handles products for older customers. This includes figures and plastic models. It also took over Banpresto's prize business.
What Bandai Makes
Scale Models
Bandai makes detailed models of many things.
Star Wars Models
Bandai has made model kits of these Star Wars vehicles and characters:
- Millennium Falcon
- X-Wing
- Y-Wing
- Tie fighter
Toys
Bandai makes many different kinds of toys. Some popular lines include:
- S.H.Figuarts figures
- Kira Yamato
- Lacus Clyne
- Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Action Figures
- Tanjiro and Nezuko (released in 2024)
- Pocoyo related products (from 2010-2012)
How Bandai is Organized
Bandai's main office is in Taitō, Tokyo, Japan. The company has offices in many countries. These include the United States (Bandai America), Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, and Spain.
Bandai is fully owned by Bandai Namco Holdings. It leads the Toy and Hobby part of its parent company.
Bandai is one of the largest and most successful toy companies in the world. Other big toy companies are Hasbro and Mattel. Bandai tries to make new and exciting products for its customers. Their slogan, "Break out of the box," shows this idea.
Companies Under Bandai
Bandai Spirits Co., Ltd. makes figures and plastic models for older fans. They use popular characters from shows like Mobile Suit Gundam, One Piece, Pokémon, and Dragon Ball. They also make figures from Disney and Star Wars.
Bandai also makes candies, board games, and small capsule toys. They do this through their company MegaHouse Corporation. MegaHouse also sells toys and figures under its MegaToy name. MegaHouse even has the license for the Rubik's Cube in Japan. They have made many different versions of the Rubik's Cube just for Japan. Another company, Plex, creates manga comics, TV shows, and products based on characters.
Images for kids
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Arcadia
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LCD Solarpower
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Playdia
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Wonder Swan
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See also
In Spanish: Bandai para niños
