Manga Mavericks Adds Miles Atherton to Board to Support Aggressive Growth Plans
The move supports the boutique publisher's aggressive growth plans for 2026
Los Angeles, CA; January 22nd, 2026 – Manga Mavericks Books, the boutique manga publishing house founded by critics and fans, today announced Miles Atherton, a veteran in the overseas anime and manga business, has joined its Board of Directors in the role of senior advisor. He will be supporting Manga Mavericks as they accelerate their publishing output, helping the independent publisher to scale, reaching new audiences and sales channels.
“As Manga Mavericks enters its most ambitious year yet, with our publishing catalog expected to exceed 20 titles by the end of 2026, bringing Miles into our team will radically transform our publishing initiatives in our goal of surfacing unique and profound Japanese creators and manga,” says Varun Gupta, CEO of Manga Mavericks LLC. “Miles shares both our fan-centric priorities and our data-driven approach to business. His robust relationships and track record of marketing experience in the anime and manga industries will allow us to accelerate our footprint in the North American market while maintaining the high bar of quality that we have strived for.”
Miles Atherton brings years of anime and manga industry experience to the Manga Mavericks team. He is currently the CEO of White Box Entertainment, a consulting firm focused on analytics and marketing within the anime and manga niche where his work is trusted by some of the biggest names in the industry. He also serves in an advisory role for Anime Trending, the fan engagement platform and marketing agency. Previously, Atherton served as the Chief Marketing Officer of Anime Limited and as a director of audience development at Crunchyroll, where he was recognized as a leader of Digiday's “Best Social Media Team” in 2019.
“Manga Mavericks is filling a critical gap in the market that shows a great deal of promise,” says Atherton. “I am thrilled to contribute at such an exciting time for the company and hope to see my peers join me in supporting this up-and-coming team who is taking on such an essential part of the manga ecosystem.”
About Manga Mavericks LLC
Leveraging the experience and connections they accumulated in the manga industry over nearly ten years of podcasting and press coverage, Manga Mavericks LLC launched Manga Mavericks Books in 2025 as a publishing house highlighting the eclectic storytelling, artistry, and creativity of Japanese creators and comics for the North American market. Born out of a desire to highlight great artistry going under-acknowledged in the West, Manga Mavericks Books is an imprint dedicated to an extremely high standard of quality and a deep respect for creators, with the goal of pushing the industry forward in print, localization, and presentation.
Los Angeles, CA; January 22nd, 2026 – Manga Mavericks Books, the boutique manga publishing house founded by critics and fans, today announced Miles Atherton, a veteran in the overseas anime and manga business, has joined its Board of Directors in the role of senior advisor. He will be supporting Manga Mavericks as they accelerate their publishing output, helping the independent publisher to scale, reaching new audiences and sales channels.
“As Manga Mavericks enters its most ambitious year yet, with our publishing catalog expected to exceed 20 titles by the end of 2026, bringing Miles into our team will radically transform our publishing initiatives in our goal of surfacing unique and profound Japanese creators and manga,” says Varun Gupta, CEO of Manga Mavericks LLC. “Miles shares both our fan-centric priorities and our data-driven approach to business. His robust relationships and track record of marketing experience in the anime and manga industries will allow us to accelerate our footprint in the North American market while maintaining the high bar of quality that we have strived for.”
Miles Atherton brings years of anime and manga industry experience to the Manga Mavericks team. He is currently the CEO of White Box Entertainment, a consulting firm focused on analytics and marketing within the anime and manga niche where his work is trusted by some of the biggest names in the industry. He also serves in an advisory role for Anime Trending, the fan engagement platform and marketing agency. Previously, Atherton served as the Chief Marketing Officer of Anime Limited and as a director of audience development at Crunchyroll, where he was recognized as a leader of Digiday's “Best Social Media Team” in 2019.
“Manga Mavericks is filling a critical gap in the market that shows a great deal of promise,” says Atherton. “I am thrilled to contribute at such an exciting time for the company and hope to see my peers join me in supporting this up-and-coming team who is taking on such an essential part of the manga ecosystem.”
About Manga Mavericks LLC
Leveraging the experience and connections they accumulated in the manga industry over nearly ten years of podcasting and press coverage, Manga Mavericks LLC launched Manga Mavericks Books in 2025 as a publishing house highlighting the eclectic storytelling, artistry, and creativity of Japanese creators and comics for the North American market. Born out of a desire to highlight great artistry going under-acknowledged in the West, Manga Mavericks Books is an imprint dedicated to an extremely high standard of quality and a deep respect for creators, with the goal of pushing the industry forward in print, localization, and presentation.
discuss this in the forum |
bookmark/share with:
