Today we’d like to introduce you to Raymond Chiang.
Raymond, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I joined SPJA as a consultant back in 2009 to help develop organizational structure and provide operational support. Over the last 10+ years, I served as vice chairman, Director of Operations, Vice President of Operations, then Chief Operating Officer before taking on the CEO role in 2017.
Has it been a smooth road?
As with every organization, there will of course be obstacles/challenges along the way… In my early years with SPJA, it was battling the negative stigma surrounding anime as anime fans would pretty much by ostracized by society – not like how it is now, where it has become more mainstream and popular among different ages and more accessible through Netflix, Hulu, and Crunchyroll. The organization also experienced the effects of hypergrowth without a proper business foundation in place and essentially having to build from scratch. It also becomes a cultural shock to some having to adapt to a different way of doing things. Security has and is always a priority for us and finding a balance between safety and attendee experience is sometimes challenging. Especially with the current COVID-19 environment and the everchanging climate, it throws a whole new curveball at the world.
We’d love to hear more about your organization.
Founded in 1992, SPJA is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to celebrating and uplifting the unique and deep culture that surrounds Japanese animation. Our roots originated from Cal Animage Alpha, an anime club at UC Berkeley, which co-sponsored the first Anime Expo in 1992, along with its predecessor Anime Con in 1991.
Since then, SPJA has grown exponentially in its endeavors, with Anime Expo becoming the largest anime convention in North America, as well as establishing B2B conference Project Anime, and partnering with World Cosplay Summit to organize its US preliminary. With each unique event we produce, our purpose never strays – we aim to promote, celebrate, and educate the public about Japanese animation, manga, video games, and traditional culture.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Los Angeles is a great place for the event space.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1522 Brookhollow Dr. Suite 1
Santa Ana, CA 92705 - Website: www.spja.org
- Phone: 714-937-2994
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheSPJA/
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/society-for-the-promotion-of-japanese-animation-spja-/
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