From “Niche Frenzy” to “Raging Wildfire”: The Rapid Growth of Anime Conventions Achieves New Milestones

Recently, the Weifang SWG Anime Convention, which focuses on the “A CGN” (Anime, Comic, Game, and Novel) industry, has sparked a fresh wave of discussion.It is reported that the Weifang SWG Anime Convention has successfully hosted two editions at the Weifang Lushang Exhibition Center, with the first held from August 16 to 17, 2025, and the second, “Weifang SWG Anime & Gaming Carnival 2.0,” taking place in October 2025. What was unexpected, however, was the rapid pace of the second convention, which was driven by the overwhelming success of the first. Based on the success of the first, the second edition of the event was significantly upgraded. Attendees could buy tickets for just 80 RMB, which granted them access to 16 locally-prepared, traditional banquet dishes and a birthday cake celebration for attendees celebrating their birthdays that month. By combining the format of “Anime Convention + Traditional Banquet” with immersive rituals and an ultra-immersive atmosphere, the event successfully broke through the dimensional wall.Of course, as with any anime convention, content related to “A CGN” was essential. The exhibition brought together an extensive array of popular anime and gaming IPs, famous cosplayers, and industry professionals.

It featured immersive thematic exhibition areas, signing events, and creative markets, providing attendees with opportunities to get up close and personal with their favorite characters, actively participate in stage interactions, and enjoy a diverse range of entertainment experiences.This prompts us to reflect: how powerful is the magic and potential of anime conventions, and how far can the industry grow? As the market scales toward a trillion-dollar industry, with a progressively diverse consumer base, how can we maintain original creativity and avoid homogenized competition as the industry grows? How can we balance commercial value with cultural authenticity, and regulate the exhibition ecosystem and market order? These are critical challenges the industry must face. However, what cannot be denied is that the anime industry has grown from a niche subculture to a driving force in economic transformation and a significant vessel for youth culture. It provides young people with a platform for self-expression and social connections, and with its strong consumer pull and cultural influence, it has become a new engine for urban tourism and commercial innovation.The Emergence of the Anime Industry.The roots of China’s anime industry trace back to the early 1990s. During this time, foreign anime works entered the Chinese market through VHS tapes and television broadcasts, quietly amassing the first wave of core enthusiasts among the youth demographic.

These early consumers were mainly students, who formed niche groups through spontaneous communication and sharing of anime resources. Consumption behavior focused on purchasing comic books and anime-related products like stickers, laying the foundation for the industry’s future development.After more than a decade of market cultivation and cultural accumulation, in 2002, the Chinese government began implementing targeted support policies aimed at nurturing and promoting domestic anime. These policies not only rapidly increased the output of domestic animation but also activated local creative vitality. In 2012, the Ministry of Culture released the “12th Five-Year Plan for National Animation Industry Development,” marking the first time the anime industry was included in a separate national plan. This signaled that the anime industry had entered its growth phase. During this time, the industry further segmented, with platforms such as Jinjiang Literature City quickly rising in prominence. The massive number of high-quality IPs produced by these platforms were adapted into various forms, including manga, anime, and audio dramas, reaching a wider audience of young consumers. The consumer demand also expanded beyond content consumption to include IP-related product collections, online community interactions, and other diverse scenarios, forming the initial “A CGN” consumption ecosystem.The Rapid Growth of China’s Anime Industry.Since 2014, China’s anime industry has entered a period of rapid development.

With the growth of the core consumer base and the inclusion of new generations of consumers, the scale of the “A CGN” community has continued to expand, and the market’s commercial model has become more mature. “A CGN” is no longer confined to being a “subculture” or “niche culture” and has officially become an indispensable part of current consumer trends. During this stage, a variety of high-quality IPs emerged, spanning anime, comics, online novels, and games, with cross-media IP matrices constantly emerging to meet the diverse needs of consumers. Consumer behavior has also become more rational and diverse; consumers are not only willing to pay for high-quality content but also actively participate in offline anime conventions, IP-themed events, and other immersive consumption scenarios, pushing the anime economy to extend and expand from online to offline.Entering 2025, the “A CGN” industry has spread like wildfire. According to statistics from Zhongxin Jingwei, during this year’s Mid-Autumn and National Day holidays, at least 413 “A CGN”-related exhibitions were held across the country. When considering events held in non-standard venues such as shopping malls, theme parks, and scenic spots, the total number of anime exhibitions exceeded 1,000, reflecting the sustained growth and deepening of the offline anime economy.Local and National Growth of Anime Exhibitions.

From first-tier cities to counties, anime conventions have become an essential social and entertainment choice for young “A CGN” consumers across the country. Consumers strengthen their sense of identity and belonging to anime culture through cosplay displays, IP-related product trading, and fan meetups. Behind this phenomenon is the growing demand for immersive cultural experiences. The explosive growth of offline events like anime conventions has, in turn, promoted the full-chain development of the “A CGN” industry, forming a virtuous cycle of “content creation—consumer demand—scene expansion.”Setting the Benchmark: Large-Scale Anime Exhibitions.Large-scale anime conventions have reshaped the development of the industry, from regional conventions focused on niche groups to national-level exhibitions leading the industry, and even global events that radiate internationally. These exhibitions are not only cultural windows and industry connection platforms, but also, through their scale, innovation, and diverse formats, continue to raise the ceiling for industry development. They provide strong support for the standardized, high-quality development of the “A CGN” economy and have become the core platform for observing industry trends and unlocking market potential.The Future of “A CGN” Exhibitions in China.The rapid development of the “A CGN” industry has drawn major internet companies to speed up their involvement.

These companies have brought their flow and resources, which have further propelled the spread of “A CGN” culture, creating a virtuous cycle of mutual empowerment. Bilibili, a leader in the “A CGN” field, launched “Bilibili World (BW)” in 2017, a large-scale offline event covering all aspects of the “A CGN” world. In 2025, BW set new records, with 167 exhibitors, nearly 800 cars, and over 30,000 cosplayers attending, attracting 400,000 attendees, a 60% increase from previous years. The event solidified its position as Asia’s largest “A CGN” comprehensive exhibition.As platforms like Weibo, Kuaishou, and Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) have entered the “A CGN” offline scene, they have brought fresh vitality to the industry. In 2025, Weibo launched its first WAW Weibo Game and Anime Exhibition, drawing 68,000 visitors with more than 100 top-tier “A CGN” influencers and 150 popular IPs.Expanding the Economic Impact of “A CGN” Exhibitions.As the scale and influence of “A CGN” conventions continue to grow, they have gone beyond simply being niche events and have become powerful engines driving the full-chain consumption of local economies, spanning food, travel, shopping, and entertainment. Events like BW 2025 and ChinaJoy in Shanghai have significantly boosted local consumption, with ticket sales, hotel bookings, and retail consumption seeing substantial growth.Through strategic cooperation between local governments and enterprises, “A CGN” exhibitions have transitioned from being a subculture to a major driver of regional economic development, integrating diverse industries and becoming a key engine of urban economic transformation.