The Pokémon Company adopted its current name in 2000 after expanding beyond Pokémon Center stores.
The organization began as Pokémon Center Co., Ltd., founded in April 1998 through a joint investment by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures. Its initial role was to operate Pokémon Center retail stores in Japan, including the first location in Nihonbashi, Tokyo.
In October 2000, the company broadened its responsibilities to cover the Pokémon franchise as a whole and changed to its present name. Its work includes brand management, licensing, marketing, publishing, and coordination across games, cards, animation, films, merchandise, and other media.
The company’s name is therefore not the same as the date the Pokémon franchise began. The franchise launched with the Japanese Game Boy games in 1996, while the company responsible for managing the broader brand took its current form four years later. Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures remain the three parent companies associated with the franchise’s ownership and management.