John is officially the Assistant Brand Manager at Pokémon USA, but around the office (where I currently work in brand management) he’s known as the Pokémon Expert, Pokémon Professor, and (usually when he’s out of earshot) He Who Knows So Much About Pokémon That It’s Almost Scary.

Starting at the Bottom
John’s Pokémon career was launched not with a marketing degree or a portfolio of branding campaigns for an array of children’s brands, but simply a love and deep understanding of the Pokémon brand.

As a lifelong video game player, John was intrigued by Pokémon, which originated as a video game (and is now an empire of trading cards, cartoons, and licensed products), even before its arrival in the US. “I’d read an article about this game that was really popular in Japan, and it sounded much more complex than your typical ‘solve a quest’ game.”

Shortly after Pokémon invaded American shores, John played the game, watched the cartoon… and was immediately hooked. Even though he had no professional branding experience, he understood that these two brand elements were more in synch than those of similar brands. “I appreciated the synergy,” he says. “As a kid I’d see a display of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures and think, ‘Michaelangelo never used those accessories in the cartoon!’”

But there’s more to life than cartoons and video games, even if you’re a guy in your early 20s. While job-hunting, John spotted an open entry-level position at the Pokémon retail store in New York City’s Rockefeller Center. “I never worked in retail, but the job was right up my alley,” John says. “I sold myself as someone who was really in tune with the brand.”

He expected the job to last a few months: what kind of future is there in stocking Pikachu dolls? In fact, he spent three years in a number of positions at the store—sales, teaching kids how to play the video game, store manager—before moving into the corporate office.

A Pokémon Promotion
The Pokémon people in the corporate office were very familiar with John and his Pokémon expertise (it helped that a short walk separated the office from the store), and he was often the point man for in-store promotions. Eventually, he was asked to transition into the marketing department. (Soon after John left retail, the 10,000-square-foot store closed and reopened as Nintendo World ; Pokémon products still occupy much of the real estate.)

John admits that moving from retail to corporate was “a little bumpy… like going from junior high school to freshman year.” He never felt any What’s this retail guy doing here? vibe, yet “it was intimidating in the beginning.”

John’s two-and-a-half years in marketing covered a wide range of activities, from research and focus groups to live events—including managing Pokémon’s relationship with Macy’s during the development of the updated Pikachu balloon for the Thanksgiving Day parade. His retail background was valuable because he had directly interacted with diverse groups of fans and their parents. “I had a good idea of what the brand means to them,” he notes.

Initially, Pokémon didn’t have a centralized approval system for most brand decisions, so the company eventually formed a brand management team. John was one of the first people asked to come aboard. This time, the career shift wasn’t as intimidating. “I was looking for new challenges, and in joining the new team I wasn’t exactly entering uncharted territory,” he says. “Many of the decisions I made in marketing were actually of a brand-management nature, and I knew Pokémon so well that much of the work I did was second-nature to me.”

John’s role in brand management covers a lot of Pokémon ground. On any particular day he might be reviewing TV and movie script translations, sifting through a mountain of approvals, casting American voice actors, or acting as the liaison with The Pokémon Company (as the company is known in Japan) for video game releases in the US.

Though many of the major brand decisions are made in Japan, localization challenges abound for the US office. “The brand strategy in Japan is very well coordinated in the way the movies and video games are released,” John says. “We have to deal with delays between releases in the US and Japan, as well as ensure the products are understandable by an American audience.”

Not Lost in Translation
Which isn’t always as simple as rendering one language to another, he cautions. “You have to take into account the cultural differences between the two countries. In Japan, for instance, it’s common for a child to carry a handkerchief. Pokémon terrycloth handkerchiefs that were popular there just didn’t sell very well in the States.”

His time in retail also brought experience of brand elements that could be gauged only by witnessing consumer behavior. “With a brand as complex as ours, it’s very difficult to convey everything there is in its packaging,” he notes. “You don’t know how a product will be perceived until you actually see the consumer—in most cases, a parent—pick it up off a shelf.” he notes.

Each video game release and cartoon series can be enjoyed on its own (which allows newcomers to break into the brand with every new release), but longtime fans appreciate that many brand elements, from characters to game mechanics, can be traced back to Pokémon’s origins. With each new release—the number of unique Pokémon characters has grown from 151 to nearly 500—the brand management team must deliver a consistent message. “An error in one place will trickle down to other areas of the brand,” John says. “And the fans will notice.”

Many of those fans are as hardcore as John. “Fans are very possessive of Pokémon—as was I, before I joined the company,” he recalls. “And oftentimes corporate decisions will go against their personal feelings about the direction of the brand. Even when I worked in retail, I’d silently rail about particular brand decisions. Now that I work in brand management, I understand how much thought and direction actually go into these decisions.”

“Even though you can’t please everyone, we love our fans,” he adds. “We’re more on our toes knowing there’s such a dedicated community posting on myriad Internet forums, from debating minute stuff like the name of a cartoon episode to demanding we release the game they know is already thrilling kids in Japan.”

As a fan himself, John appreciates the work that goes into maintaining the Pokémon brand. “Every spin-off from the original video game is aligned in such a way that even the most casual fan can understand what the brand is about,” he says. “You might come in as a fan of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, but our work in brand management ensures you can take what you know about the trading cards to get up-to-speed with the video games and the cartoons. Not every children’s brand is aligned as well across several platforms.”

Pokémon Pride
Unless the Pokémon powers-that-be create a new character called Hershbergerchu, the average fan is unaware of John’s role in shaping the brand. But that’s just fine with him. “I’m especially proud of my work with the cartoon, from casting to localization,” he says. “The current episodes are consistent with previous releases, and I ensure that there’s consistency across the brand. Overall, I can look at a finished product, recognize my input, and realize, ‘I did that.’ ”

He attributes his success to following a maxim he offers to anyone wanting to work in the development of a children’s brand: “Never underestimate the value of regularly observing fan reaction and consumer response to a product.”

If Pokémon ever packed up and went back to Japan, John would consider working at another children’s brand. “I have a passion for kids’ entertainment,” he says, noting that Pokémon has already passed its tenth anniversary—practically an epoch in the fickle world of kids’ brands—and shows no sign of slowing down.

Neither, in fact, does John. “We have more than 490 different Pokémon characters,” he says, “and I have a soft spot for each and every one of them.”

Spoken like a true fan.

Anthony Zumpano lives and works in New York.