Buying an Azuki today means collecting: One of the best anime art digital collectibles A digital identity rooted in the Garden Access to the team, early looks, and a deep community of holders across the world The potential for your Azuki to be licensed into products like the TCG, manga, and beyond Pride in seeing Azuki expand from collectible to global IP Azuki

Finally completed the set : Zero, Shao portrait, and Serial Mizuki. @steamboy33 Now I need multiple, some for grading, some in binders that never see the light, some just randomly sitting on my desk while I am at my PC. NFTs, or TCGs, Azuki art is Azuki art.

I’m 1 of the loyal fans here & they focused so hard on us for many years now. It’s time for the world to see what Azuki can bring to the table (@AzukiTCG). Being here since Mint, I know @Zagabond & the team like to build on strengths and 1 of those is Art x Anime. Around here we like to water the garden to see it grow. Since mint, it’s been growing & I’m a proud fan from success & failures. Love to see it all ❤️‍🔥🙏

Blacker Lotus 😂

Sunday Mail day. 📦🔥 @Azuki @AzukiTCG finally showed up. 🤓🫘

i hear ppl say that projects need to "focus on the nfts" a lot. it's weak feedback because it implies that there's a successful blueprint for how to build a sustainable business off of "focusing on nfts" when the data clearly shows that there isn't. therefore, i believe projects should play to their own strengths, write their own playbook, be clear about their path, and then holders can decide if they want to be along for the ride or not. more thoughts below:

I went through all the balanced, logical @azuki takes on the timeline and read every reply Z made across those threads. Most people skim the discourse and stay confined to their own assumptions. But, if you take the time to understand where Z’s head is at, the vision is clear. > Azuki is doubling down on its core strengths: art, storytelling, technology, world building, manga and the TCG. > Team isn’t ignoring collectors or the community. The reality is that resources are finite and with a national TCG launch approaching, execution on that front has to take priority right now. > There are still resources dedicated to Web3, community support, collector groups, and ongoing conversations with holders. The challenge isn’t caring it’s balancing priorities and accepting that not everything can be done at a high level simultaneously. > Not every Web3 project needs the same playbook. Different projects have different paths to winning. > The goal is to reach the masses, and also serve existing NFT collectors. Sustainably. > Manga and TCG are being prioritized because they’re scalable consumer products that can introduce millions of people to the brand. > Azuki was early on collector culture, but late on building IP formats that mainstream audiences can easily consume. So that’s where the work is going on. > NFTs alone are not a sustainable business model. The market is simply too small. > Royalties and NFT sales cannot support a large and long term IP company. > Even with enforced royalties, you still have low volume. No serious team can scale a real project on that as the primary biz model. > Comparing Azuki to luxury brands misses the point. Luxury brands sell desirable physical products repeatedly. NFTs are a niche market. > Azuki’s mission is to build a durable entertainment and IP company, all while optimising for short term, sustainably. > Community initiatives still matter, but resources have to be allocated based on current priorities. Z is active in every single Azuki GC for ~5 years now. > Collector focused initiatives aren’t being ignored forever, but right now manga and TCG take precedence. > Z openly acknowledges areas where Azuki is lacking and is comfortable making those tradeoffs because lacking areas will be also be developed in time. Per the priority. > Feedback is welcomed, but not every request can be executed immediately. (I feel @BobuBeanFarmer RFPs can come in here) > The long term vision is a decentralized brand that can survive beyond any NFT market cycles. > Success looks like people falling in love with the story and universe first, then discovering the NFTs and community later. The biggest takeaway for me: Z no longer thinks like the founder of a crypto project. He thinks like the founder of an IP company. Whether you agree with every decision or not, the vision is coherent, the priorities are clear and they’re building for a prosperous future. I know, I sometimes even I wish Azuki was operating with infinite resources, outside capital and unsustainable marketing budgets because they put out such great work. Part of me also wants to see that work come out everyday like light speed haha. But it’s not sustainable. Reality is Azuki is 100% community funded with no outside capital, has serious industry merit and is deeply product focussed with growing verticals TCG, Upcoming Manga, Studio Azuki and Anime.com. Pretty much ahead of 99.9% of the brands in terms of broader visibility, sustainable capital allocation via products, collabs and approach. and that is a very special thing in a space where initiatives die out daily. I know we will see Azuki on top again soon. Matter of time. TLDR: IKZ. TTP.

Azuki TCG Judge program is live. Find out how to sign up and earn these promo cards!

There is so much of the culture we loved and developed in web3 that resonates with those outside of our bubble. It’s not that the roots have been forgotten, but action is being taken so that the roots don’t just grow DEEPER, but WIDER to cover more communities and interests that can appreciate all that Azuki has built in the last 5 years. I don’t speak for everyone, but I want to be a force to continue to support the vision, to show those interested in art and culture the lasting marks Azuki has made. I’m not a builder in the way some of you have become in web3, but I enjoy building connections with like minded people through experiences in and out of the digital space, through camaraderie and competition, and through good vibes and dope shit. Isn’t that what Azuki’s always been about?

Few things are better than watching someone discover the Garden for the first time. This week, I got to experience that with the owner of my local game store. He’d seen our community having a great time, but hadn’t played himself yet, so I asked him to run a few games at closing time. By the end of the first game, he said unprompted how fun it was, how easy it was to learn, and how it reminded him of Riftbound, OP, and Gundam, but without the frustrating parts. Then he mentioned he had a fashion background, so I told him about 424, PFW, Moser, Satoshi, and AMBUSH, and he was speechless. We took a break talked about the art, the animations, the dope shit and just how much of this world has been built and experienced by all of us over the years, and how it all connects through the game. As we kept playing, I started pointing out different pieces of the lore, the community, and the artists featured in the cards, and how our beloved characters’ stories are reflected in their abilities. Two games later, a card store owner who didn’t know Azuki had committed to running a weekly tournament, purchased half a dozen cases, and we started texting to talk more about Azuki. There’s a whole world of people ready to join us and love our story. Yesterday reminded me of that in a very real way. Thanks to the crew at Kaleido for the games, and s/o @SteveG60117 for pushing me to share this.

My 1 share allocation of $SPCX is gonna look good next to my 1 share of $FIG. Thank you Robinhood!

Still can’t believe I own this.

NYC Local, tomorrow at 6pm ET We're expecting a strong field, several new faces, and the first IRL matchups between Los Angeles and NYC rivals. Come learn. Come play. All are welcome. Register in the Azuki App.

part 4 knock, knock. who's there?

My LGS is ready for launch day. If you want to see Gates Awakened at your local shop, now's the time to let them know. tcg.azuki.com/wholesale

Our friends @jfwong, @XellTweets, and @MINHxDYNASTY crack open their first box of Azuki TCG together! Thanks @ProjectCCG for hosting us. Watch the full video below!

The next Garden Gathering is here. Wednesday, June 17 2:30 PM PT / 5:30 PM ET / 11:30 PM CET Join @dgtlemissions and @cornd0w0g, Head of Production for Azuki TCG, for the latest on the AZK-01 Gates Awakened U.S. launch on June 26, plus an AMA on TCG production, market trends, and bringing a card game to market.

Want @AzukiTCG at your local game store? Go to your LGS, ask about ATCG, and share this post. The team has put together prize support, demo decks, and dope tournament kits to help stores get started. Let’s bring more players into the Garden. Please reach out if your store needs support!

We're putting real support behind the stores that run Azuki TCG. Here's what your shop can get. 🧵

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