Akita Shoten

Akita Publishing Co., Ltd. (株式会社秋田書店, Kabushiki-gaisha Akita Shoten) is a Japanese publishing company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the most prominent independent publishing companies specializing in the manga industry. It was established on August 10, 1948, by Teio Akita, a former employee of Shogakukan. Originally founded to publish educational books and children's literature, the company quickly transitioned to focus primarily on the adolescent and young adult comic market. Manga magazines published by Akita Shoten include its legendary flagship shonen publication, Weekly Shōnen Champion, alongside Monthly Shōnen Champion and Champion RED. Their young adult demographic features seinen magazines such as Young Champion and the digital platform YanChan Web. For female readers, they publish popular shojo and josei magazines including Monthly Princess and Elegance Eve. In response to digital shifts, the company operates online comic storefronts via Manga Cross and its specialized web platform Champion Cross, which originally debuted in October 2014 and functions alongside their dedicated vertical webtoon brand, J-TOON.