The Local Comic Shop Experience

Topic

This is a thread to talk about your experience with local comic book shop(s)

Replies

Well…

As some of you know, I am a person of color which means that sometimes when I walk into a store, some will take me for shoplifter and so on. I really wish it wasn’t the case but let’s be honest and realistic…

Anyway, to off set this, sometimes I go to a comic store and talk to the help about the latest comic movies and shows out, related comics and just shoot the breeze. This puts them at ease and so on and I get good feedback on what to get. Sometimes I buy things I like, other times I just browse.

The huge stores in NY are good but the smaller stores are more cozy
and personable. I like to support the smaller stores to give them a chance. Most of the small shops also are into sports memorabilia as comics alone don’t cut it. They get a few kids who stop by after school but mostly older customers have pull lists and so on.

Anyway, hope this post helps…

[Al-x]

Sometimes I ask the shop if they are asking or buying comics or cards. They usually will buy if there is a demand in the market.

FWIW, there is a tv show Pawn Stars and Antiques Road Show where people come in with stuff, an appraiser analyzes it offers a price with an explanation. It helped me understand what they go through and so on.

For example, if I had comic or card they sell for 100, it really does them no good or profit to buy it off me for 100. They would also have to put in the work of repackaging and reselling it. So they would buy it off me at a reduced price that would be negotiable. When I was a kid I never understood that.

Interestingly, there are websites that will buy your collection at decent rate if you want to clear out space at home.

• This reply was modified 5 years, 1 month ago by Al-x.

The bigger stores in Manhattan have these glass displays
of statues and figures of comic and movie characters that
are very well done, but are a bit up there in price.

I saw one of Galactus with a small Silver Surfer on his
shoulder and they were asking about $ 500 for it. I had to
ask the lady clerk at the store who will take that off your
hands at that price. She said a few will. Personally, I wouldn’t
spend on a statue that I know will just be there collecting dust
in a few months.

Also, most new ones think that because it is a comic store you can
bring the kids etc, but some things in the store are not for children.

Just saying.

You know I wish I had 10 bucks every time I go to a LCS and the sign says

This is not a library

I’ve been in London for a few days this week and went to check out Gosh! Comics in Soho for the first time as I’d heard good things.

It’s a really nice shop: not huge, but with a great selection that cuts across all different types of comics including old classics, current mainstream stuff and also more niche titles. The design of the shop is very nice and conducive to browsing, and the staff were very friendly. I’ll be back!

My LCS (King’s Comics) has moved for the second time in a few years – their last move was from a decent street-front location to a great one on one of the main retail strips in the city.

That stretch of road was a construction site as a new light rail track was being built; many small businesses suffered as a result of the noise and other disruption, so it’s possible the comic shop’s lease was discounted.

Now that the light rail is up and running (making that stretch of road much more pedestrian friendly as sections of it are closed to cars) rents must have increased.

Their new location is a very small space on the dark 7th floor above a bookshop. Their immediate neighbours inside are small boutiques and medical practitioners.

From what I could see there’s no signage out front indicating their location, and although they email me monthly invoices for my pull list (which consists of one title only now – Savage Dragon) there was no announcement of the new address – I didn’t know they’d moved until I rocked up to the prior location and found a completely different shop there.

Both of their previous premises had prominent window displays with statues and posters relating to whatever the current hot property was (movie tie-ins, etc), which drew in casual customers – this is no more.

I’m pretty concerned about their future.

Sorry to hear that, Andrew. Most brink-n-mortar shops need casual street traffic to survive.

On the other hand:

Andrew wrote:

my pull list (which consists of one title only now – Savage Dragon)

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Andrew

njerry wrote:

On the other hand: Andrew wrote: my pull list (which consists of one title only now – Savage Dragon)

No wonder they’re going under if their customers have such horrible taste.

They have a policy of a three title minimum for pull lists – mine’s gone down to one through attrition and books being super delayed, and when I’ve picked up my last few orders they haven’t checked their system to see that I’m breaking the rule.

They have my CC number and charge it automatically so I don’t really get the rationale behind the rule.

But if they go bust I don’t know how I’ll get SD. Maybe I’ll need to shift to digital but it’s not the same – I have a full run (in paper) of Dragon to now.

Do you have any mail-order alternatives? Any LCSs that sell via ebay?

I was reading that in the UK even though more high street premises were vacant than ever before rents were not reducing as owners are sitting on the capital value rather than being concerned about the rental income.

It sounds like a policy set for collapse but what’s happening is to regenerate the areas when they look rundown they then propose city living and converting them to residential property which has way bigger returns.

It’s very destructive for retailers though because they are getting it from both sides, increased costs and the internet undercutting them.

I don’t know if that’s happening in Australia at all but I’m seeing some echoes of that.

 

 

Andrew wrote:

But if they go bust I don’t know how I’ll get SD. Maybe I’ll need to shift to digital but it’s not the same – I have a full run (in paper) of Dragon to now.

Jerry will hand deliver a copy to you when a new issue comes out.

Todd wrote:

hand deliver

Definitely. As soon as Andrew comes to New York, I will hand deliver each issue he missed into his hands.

Seriously, Andrew, if your shop closes, I’ll gladly pick up an extra issue of Savage Dragon each month and ship them to you. After all, we Fin-heads have to stick together!!

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Andrew

njerry wrote:

After all, we Fin-heads have to stick together!!

Both of you.

I’ll look into it if/when it comes to it. The shipping would be exorbitant; maybe I could set something up with a shop in a different part of Australia. There is my old comics shop in Liverpool, which is where I first picked up a new issue of SD with #20 – I don’t know if they’d allow a single item standing order though.

RonnieM wrote:

Both of you.

Don’t be hating.

Erik’s good value, honest, and the achievement of writing, penciling, and inking every single issue (and sometimes colouring and lettering them too!) is a massive one.

For anyone interested in the craft of comics, he occasionally posts dos/don’ts on Twitter (and probably on FB too) – some good ones recently around word balloon placement, and needless panel border breaking.

LCS experience

I go to my shop and see the wide display of comics and the fantasy covers and sometimes I say this is a bit too much.

So I just stick to a few titles and move on.

Why?

Why Not?

sometimes I do the same thing. It is nourishing for the imagination but dangerous for the wallet

I try to give new titles a shot. If something attracts my attention because of the cover, or the subject matter, or the creative team involved, I pick up the first issue/arc to see if it is worth a larger investment. That’s one of the reasons I prefer to visit my LCS each week instead of using a cheaper subscription mail service.

njerry wrote:

I pick up the first issue/arc to see if it is worth a larger investment

not everyone has your wallet or investment capacity, Jerry. 

I just use the money I’ve saved by not buying any Marvel or DC products. 

so like Al-x , you both look at all the titles but exclude a certain part of the ones laid out and make your choices from the remainder.

Rocket wrote:

so like Al-x , you both look at all the titles but exclude a certain part of the ones laid out and make your choices from the remainder.

Al likes to rip off old ladies to help fund his comic habit.

How unladylike of him.

RonnieM wrote:

Al likes to rip off old ladies to help fund his comic habit.

You remember…

Al-x wrote:

RonnieM wrote:

Al likes to rip off old ladies to help fund his comic habit.

You remember…

That time you beat up a poor old widow for her dead son’s comic collection?  Ya!

LOL!!!

It was mostly an ethics thread that helped to break the ice
in the early days of MW. My first thought provoking thread
but I digress…

On a more serious note, I am a person of color in my country
and often say things to the comic store clerk/counter person
to help break the ice, show that I am friendly, not a shoplifter etc.
Speaking of shoplifting, more stores are adopting a bag storage
system when you enter, or have some detector at the door.

Is that the situation in your LCS?

No, not at all, there’s nothing like that at my LCS – but that might be a UK/US cultural difference.

LCSs are hobby shops so I always assume there’s a bit more of a regular crowd there and people become known to the staff. That’s certainly the vibe at mine, although I’m sure they still have to be vigilant about shoplifting to an extent.

The comment about feeling like you have to break the ice and be friendly to make it clear that you’re not a criminal is saddening though. Is that kind of prejudice something you’ve experienced at your LCS?

Dave wrote:

No, not at all, there’s nothing like that at my LCS – but that might be a UK/US cultural difference.

LCSs are hobby shops so I always assume there’s a bit more of a regular crowd there and people become known to the staff. That’s certainly the vibe at mine, although I’m sure they still have to be vigilant about shoplifting to an extent.

The comment about feeling like you have to break the ice and be friendly to make it clear that you’re not a criminal is saddening though. Is that kind of prejudice something you’ve experienced at your LCS?

That’s more of a large US city thing than a comic shop thing.

Al-x wrote:

Is that the situation in your LCS?

I know you’re a fellow New Yorker, Alfred, but where do you buy your comics? I shop at Midtown on West 40th Street and I don’t think they have a “check your bag” policy, but I do recall that the old Jim Hanley’s Universe had that requirement.

Forbidden Planet had that but they have a detector and a bunch of aisle clerks keeping an eye on people.

I buy at AlexMVP on the UES near me. A nice small store and a good one.

The first comic shop I ever went to (ca. 1990 as a 9 year old) closed down a few years ago – Comic Kingdom.

Unlike my more recent store, Kings, they were completely unwelcoming – a narrow, steep, creaky staircase to the new releases and back issues, with magazines and collectibles on the ground floor.

Poorly lit, poorly ventilated premises, the clerks would have a radio playing that was just slightly miss-tuned, meaning the songs and chatter would degenerate into irritating static every few seconds. I used to be based nearby when I worked for a bank and would pop in at lunch in my business attire. They’d pretty much ignore me. When I’d come in on Fridays dressed in jeans and a t-shirt they’d watch me like a hawk, suddenly an obvious shoplifter.

The better store, Kings, when they were at their peak location before the recent moves, had a security scanner at the front, and on the busy night (Thursday) there’d be a bouncer/security guard.

The first comic shop I ever went to was called Edge of Forever in Bristol. We went on a day trip shopping there with the church and I’d seen their ads in Marvel UK comics so knew they had a shop there. I can guess at the date because I knew I bought X-Men #198 which came out in October 1985. I’d been reading up until then via the patchy newsagent distribution missing as many issues as I found so to see every single book available going back months was incredible, I had to be forced by my parents to leave. I never went back as Bristol is quite a long way.

It was only a year or two later they opened ones in Cardiff and then Swansea which are much nearer.

Funnily enough on Twitter the other day Rob Williams (writer of Judge Dredd, Suicide Squad etc) gave his story and it was almost exactly the same – same shop, shopping coach day trip etc.

Oddly, randomly, this YT video I had on to pass the time while drawing includes a photo of Comic Kingdom.

 

I was watching those shows of buyer/ appraiser of items people submit and it was informative. It explained to me why a comic a store may sell for 100 isn’t necessarily bought at that price from them if you try to sell it to them.

In the past I cleared out space in my home by selling to a store for a decent price. I took a small loss but I understand now that the store has to make a profit from their buy/sell spread and have to repackage it and so on.

It just shows that with a few exceptions, comics are an expense, not an investment.

Al-x wrote:

I was watching those shows of buyer/ appraiser of items people submit and it was informative. It explained to me why a comic a store may sell for 100 isn’t necessarily bought at that price from them if you try to sell it to them.

In the past I cleared out space in my home by selling to a store for a decent price. I took a small loss but I understand now that the store has to make a profit from their buy/sell spread and have to repackage it and so on.

It just shows that with a few exceptions, comics are an expense, not an investment.

When I sold my collection, the store was basically paying for the books of value and taking the rest off my hands. The bulk would be sold at the store at a little above cover.

I took the view that my enjoyment of reading the comics as part of the value. I got my value out of them.

The average store has a wall rack display of the titles, huge tables with boxes of past issues, a cashier spot with the more expensive stuff behind it, posters, a glass display of statues….

Any ideas to change and improve this?

Al-x wrote:

The average store has a wall rack display of the titles, huge tables with boxes of past issues, a cashier spot with the more expensive stuff behind it, posters, a glass display of statues….

Any ideas to change and improve this?

Digital?

[JRCarter]

EDIT: Meant to post the videos that were here in Random comics related things

• This reply was modified 4 years, 9 months ago by JRCarter.

Al-x wrote:

The average store has a wall rack display of the titles, huge tables with boxes of past issues, a cashier spot with the more expensive stuff behind it, posters, a glass display of statues….

Any ideas to change and improve this?

Remove the statues?

Sometimes I ask LCS if they are buying or asking for titles. It is always something they can flip or resell for a marginal profit.

Yesterday there was a kid trying to sell his Star Wars Funko toys and the guy was saying no because there is no demand for it in his store.

Learn something new each day.

No demand for an expensive piece of ugly plastic with a stupidly big head that looks kinda like a minor character in a movie? I’m shocked. Shocked, I tell you.

Due to Governor Cuomo’s “100% business reduction”, Midtown Comics is forced to close down all its brick-n-mortar stores. I guess now I will join the ranks of on-line shoppers…

My LCS has been great about making mail order options available under the current circumstances. I had initially thought they would have to close and I’d have to buy from one of the big online stores like FP, but they’ve been great on Twitter getting in touch with individuals to help set up postage for our regular pull lists.

I want to keep supporting them as I’ve been using them for 20 odd years now and they’ve always provided a great service and a friendly welcome in the shop. I want to do my bit in trying to keep them afloat while in-store footfall is going to be low.

To be clear, my on-line ordering is still with Midtown Comics. When I put in my order for next week, I was surprised to learn I already had an account with them, although the credit card on file expired in 2014!

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Todd

Diamond Comics Distributors Ceases Receiving Products For Distribution
– Report (click link)

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Todd

Fuck. I don’t know if my LCS is going to survive this, and with no income from my part-time job coming in I have to put my comics-buying on hold and can’t support them.

…and boom goes the dynamite.

I wonder how many stores and publishers will survive an extended shut-down, and if there will be enough stores left to sustain the direct market.

I’m guessing that, in the US at least, that we’re looking at a one or two month shutdown of non-essential businesses. I think we can probably put the pause button on our economy for a month, but two is pushing the breaking point. A lot of businesses, and not just comic book stores, probably won’t survive.

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Todd

A whole lot of stuff is going to be bumped to probably June or July.

What happens to the local shops that have kept the mad, dysfunctional system going is anybody’s guess.  Can’t see a lot of them surviving because the model is built around new content sales.

My LCS, Third Planet, posted this on their Facebook page:

THIS NOTICE IS FOR BOOKS THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO GO ON SALE APRIL 1st OR LATER! Currently, we are still expecting this week’s shipment (3/25/20), but there may be some delays as UPS is incredibly busy right now.

We know this is a frustrating disruption, but we appreciate your patience and understanding as we all navigate this unprecedented level of change to our lives together.

There are still plenty of ways you can support the shop in the absence of new weekly books. We have a large selection of back issues, graphic novels, and even discounted comics that you can pick up and enjoy. Browse our gaming section for a new board game to try, or pick up supplies to learn an RPG game or run your dream campaign.

We have coloring books and art guides for our creative customers and those looking to keep younger children entertained. We have model kits of varying sizes and skill levels if that’s more of your creative speed.

Not sure what you want to buy? Pick up a gift card for ANY amount, and come back later to make your selection.

Third Planet has been serving the comic & gaming community of Houston and beyond for 45 years, and we are NOT going anywhere, and we appreciate all of you out there who help us keep us going.

Ben wrote:

A whole lot of stuff is going to be bumped to probably June or July.

What happens to the local shops that have kept the mad, dysfunctional system going is anybody’s guess.  Can’t see a lot of them surviving because the model is built around new content sales.

I can see some small publishers going under, too. When I go through Previews each month, I see so many publishers whose margins must be razor thin.

It depends, for the smaller publisher the model tends to be less driven by periodical sales. The main way to operate that is build a back catalogue that brings in steady revenue. If they are canny, with people stuck at home, they’ll put in print and digital sales on those to maintain a cash flow.

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Andrew

Diamond Comic Distributors ceases receiving products for distribution Due to Coronavirus (x)

Diamond’s founder Steve Geppi has issued an official statement confirming and explaining the decision to cease receiving new product from printers for distribution starting in April, and outlining the current timeframe for its change in operation.

Here’s Geppi’s full statement:

CORONAVIRUS EFFECTS ON DISTRIBUTION

As everyone knows, the world faces ever-increasing challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its effects on the comics & collectibles and tabletop gaming industries have been felt far and wide. We are hearing from thousands of retailers that they can no longer service their customers as they have in the past, many of them forced to close by government action or resort to in-person or curbside delivery. Even those still open are seeing reduced foot traffic in most cases, a situation that seems likely to worsen with time.

Our publishing partners are also faced with numerous issues in their supply chain, working with creators, printers, and increasing uncertainty when it comes to the production and delivery of products for us to distribute. Our freight networks are feeling the strain and are already experiencing delays, while our distribution centers in New York, California, and Pennsylvania were all closed late last week. Our own home office in Maryland instituted a work from home policy, and experts say that we can expect further closures. Therefore, my only logical conclusion is to cease the distribution of new weekly product until there is greater clarity on the progress made toward stemming the spread of this disease.

EFFECTS ON DIAMOND COMIC DISTRIBUTORS

Product distributed by Diamond and slated for an on-sale date of April 1st or later will not be shipped to retailers until further notice. For the time being, however, we have been able to develop procedures with our teams at the distribution center in Olive Branch, MS to safely continue fulfillment of direct ship reorders for the retailers who are able to receive new product and need it to service their customers. It’s unlikely that orders will be filled on the same day they are placed, and these plans are subject to change if at any point we no longer feel that we can safeguard our teams while fulfilling orders.

Product distributed by Diamond UK and slated for an on-sale date of March 25th or later will not be shipped to retailers until further notice. Further updates with regard to reorders and other Diamond UK-specific information will be communicated directly to their customers as information becomes available.

EFFECTS ON ALLIANCE GAME DISTRIBUTORS

Product distributed by Alliance has been shipping from our Fort Wayne, IN and Austin, TX warehouses. Both are closing at the end of the day on Tuesday, March 24th, in the interest of employee safety and to comply with direction from local governments. Any orders not shipped by that time will not be processed until further notice. Your dedicated sales team will still be working remotely and will help you with any orders you’d like to place today or questions you may have.

OUR SHARED PATH FORWARD

With these changes in our distribution strategy, we will work with our publishing partners to develop programs that will address product already in the pipeline and what will happen when we resume distribution. We know that during this time you will face many challenges, and we will direct our energies toward addressing them, rather than fighting on increasingly numerous fronts to get product out.

For those retailers who remain open in various forms, I encourage you let loose your own creativity. For the time being, you will be able to replenish your perennials from Diamond and/or Alliance, but you should also remember the stock you already have in your stores. If your doors remain open, it’s likely you will have customers who will continue to seek diversion from events of the world. Special sales, promotions, and even eBay can help you bring in cash during this trying time. Product for which you’ve already paid may well hold some of your answers. There have been many solid suggestions offered about how to help our retailers, and we will bring many of them together in future communications.

Besides the industry’s most immediate needs, we have been and will continue looking toward the future, when we see stores reopening, bringing staff back onboard, and getting customers in the door. We are looking at issues like debt accrued due to this crisis, what reduced ordering means for your discount tiers, and the availability of credit to help stores through and after this difficult time. We don’t have all those answers today, but we understand the many issues you are facing and look forward to addressing them as partners who all have an interest in the long-term health of the industry we love so much.

As I mentioned in my last update, this industry has been one of the greatest joys of my life, from my days as a collector to a retailer to today. I and my Leadership Team have made these decisions knowing full-well the effect they will have on all of you, as well as our publishing partners and our own team members around the world. At the end of the day, the safety and security of our teams and yours, along with the many customers we all serve, is paramount. I again thank you for your ongoing patience and support.

Thank You,

Steve Geppi
Chairman & CEO, Geppi Family Enterprises

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DavidM, Todd

garjones wrote:

It depends, for the smaller publisher the model tends to be less driven by periodical sales. The main way to operate that is build a back catalogue that brings in steady revenue. If they are canny, with people stuck at home, they’ll put in print and digital sales on those to maintain a cash flow.

The smallest publishers, that only put out one or titles a month, might be in reasonably good shape. Smaller payroll, less debt, less overhead.

Likewise, Marvel and DC, with their corporate ownership, should have deep enough pockets to weather a storm for a couple of months. Image, since it’s more of a collective than a traditional publisher, should also be able to suspend operations for several months and get right back into the swing of things.

It’s the middle group of publishers that put out a fifteen or more books a month that I could see facing some trouble, with a higher overhead (payroll, rent, more printing costs) and more debt, that could get hit hard with several months of revenue.

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garjones, Todd

Looking at the Diamond website, this week looks to be particularly packed with product.

Which is bad for stores that are force-closed because they’re not essential businesses, or have reduced traffic because people are staying home or because money is suddenly tight.

I think people should maybe consider ordering a trade or two from their LCS this month instead of the discount online guys, even if it’s a few more bucks.

That includes via the Amazon affiliate links I’ve recently posted, we can live without.

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DavidM, Dave

I just found this on Twitter. I have always liked this guy and this proves he is a stand up guy.

Jim Zub
✔
@JimZub
Comic shops: If you’re stuck with any comic I wrote because a customer didn’t/couldn’t pay for it in these difficult times, I will happily buy back any at your cost so you don’t lose money. My DMs are open.

Thank you for supporting my creative work, year after year.

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DavidM, Ben

[garjones]

Jason wrote:

It’s the middle group of publishers that put out a fifteen or more books a month that I could see facing some trouble

I do agree Jason with pretty much all of that. I can’t help any LCS as there aren’t any here but what I will do this month is look at what the likes of Boom, Dynamite, Dark Horse have in their catalogues over DC and Marvel and buy them digitally. There’s bound to be some great stuff there I haven’t read yet.

They actually make significantly better margin from digital sales too, the cover price return to publisher is 65-70% compared to print where it’s closer to 30%.

• This reply was modified 4 years, 8 months ago by garjones.

garjones wrote:

I think people should maybe consider ordering a trade or two from their LCS this month instead of the discount online guys, even if it’s a few more bucks.

This is always a good idea, with or without a pandemic.

Well, Harris County and the City of Houston issued the stay at home order today so this was the last day my shop would be open for some time. The order expires April 3 but I wouldn’t be surprised if it gets extended. I picked my books earlier.

On the positive side. The Guardian has reported that book sales have surged up 35% month on month and are expected to increase rapidly as lockdowns are only a few days old in many cases. We know from last year’s reports that collected edition revenue is roughly double that of issue sales. So they could well cancel each other out.

That’s from the publishers side (and creators too) though, most of that revenue doesn’t come from comic shops but high street chains and online. Some bones are going to need to be thrown to them, to be fair some have with deep discounting and returns but probably some more needed too.

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Todd

I found out today that my LCS has closed down entirely for the time being, including for mail order. A shame. I hope they manage to come back once all this passes.

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Ben, Todd, RonnieM

‘This could change the face of comics’: Is coronavirus comic book shops’ biggest villain?

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Todd

We are also excited to confirm we’ll be reopening our stores on the 15th June! We can’t wait to see you all again. pic.twitter.com/1evqGh2sRy

— Forbidden Planet (@ForbiddenPlanet) May 30, 2020

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DavidM, Todd

I am (seriously) considering booking a day off work for 15th June. Not that I *need* any comics, but I’m going to have to go in at some point and trying to do it on a Saturday seems like a terrible idea. And it’s not like I have anything else to use holiday allowance on at the moment.

Although, it’s a 12 mile trip into central Newcastle for me. If I’m still not allowed to use public transport, that’s a hell of a walk

 

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Vikram, Todd

Beginning next week Midtown Comics will initiate curbside pickups at their four NYC locations. Order your books on-line, pay by credit card or PayPal, and opt for pickup at a specific location.

I prefer this option to the previous mail-order service, for a couple of reasons: the cost of shipping for three or four books just didn’t make sense; and my latest order is already a week late and there’s no information available on-line regarding the current status of that order.

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Vikram, Todd

I’ve recently been getting books mail-order from FP.com. But the site has been down for a few days, and then today I saw this:

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Todd

DavidM wrote:

I am (seriously) considering booking a day off work for 15th June. Not that I *need* any comics, but I’m going to have to go in at some point and trying to do it on a Saturday seems like a terrible idea. And it’s not like I have anything else to use holiday allowance on at the moment.

Me too! I have a bunch of stuff I’m hoping to pick up, and I’d like to just revel in the moment. I’ve missed it.

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DavidM, Ben

As I understand it, next Monday is also FOC date for the first of the DC books shipping exclusively via their new distributors. No arrangements have yet been made with U.K. stores. My LCS guy said today “Hopefully DC & [Diamond] will sort something out by July otherwise its everyone for themselves.” Doesn’t sound like he’s in any position to order stuff from the new distributors at the moment, which could mean weeks of no DC books at my shop.

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Todd

It’s bizarre. Roughly 30% of the direct market is outside the US and Canada. I really want to know what Diamond did that DC dumped them so hard.

garjones wrote:

It’s bizarre. Roughly 30% of the direct market is outside the US and Canada. I really want to know what Diamond did that DC dumped them so hard.

Or is this, as some have theorized, part of a longer range plan that COVID-19 provided an opportunity to accelerate?

I doubt it. I mean I have heard the theories that DC may want to opt out of the monthly market and move to digital and trades. It’s plausible but then why go to the effort to help create two new distributors?

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Vikram

Anybody know what the deal is with forbiddenplanet.com? The website is still down and it’s been unavailable for getting on for a couple of weeks now, which isn’t great. I have orders with them for books coming out this week and I’m wondering whether I need to seek them from elsewhere.

Looks like no need to panic:

Don't panic if you cannot find https://t.co/Ltoo7w71bJ tomorrow – we are undertaking essential maintenance on the site in preparation for our return. We'll be back! pic.twitter.com/xLX6ypjIIE

— Forbidden Planet (@ForbiddenPlanet) June 2, 2020

Yeah that was in early June and then a couple of days later they released the message about the cyber attack that I posted a few posts upthread. But nothing since then. Two weeks offline is a little concerning.

If they’re still planning to reopen physical shops on Monday then maybe they’ll be aiming to get the website up and running again by then too.

Yeah it’s a lot longer than usual but it looks like it’s a specific web issue rather than the company in trouble. They are still tweeting and replying and as you says the shops are due to open soon.

I could be wrong but I suspect they are having a right mare with it. When I click now I get an instant denial of access due to ‘location: Malaysia’, I have some experience there and that’s been set by an admin to prevent attacks. Most frequently spam and DDOS attacks come from outside North America and Europe so that is often a recommended setting if you are being targeted, to blanket reject countries outside that zone. (Even our spam filter here has a gentler version of that, despite the server actually being outside the ‘safe zone’).

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Dave

Dave wrote:

If they’re still planning to reopen physical shops on Monday then maybe they’ll be aiming to get the website up and running again by then too.

I’d hope for the web site to be up before they open, with info about how they are going to handle the reopening. I’d like to know if they are going to have restrictions in place, what books they are likely to have in, stuff like that, instead of just going on spec and finding that I have to queue for an hour and should have brought a mask and they haven’t had any new stock since March anyway

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Dave

They have been hit by a cyber attack and hope to be online this week but I’d guess that’s more likely to be next week now.

DavidM wrote:

I’d hope for the web site to be up before they open, with info about how they are going to handle the reopening.

I’d suspect they would as well. It’s highly unlikely this is a policy decision to have it be down.

The specific error message I am getting shows there’s a network security guy trying some stuff to get it back up. A cyberattack is slightly better excuse than nobody being able to get the old Milarworld back up because they couldn’t remember who had the password.

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Dave

It would be nice to have some confirmation of whether they’re still processing/despatching orders at the moment, or whether that’s effectively been suspended for a fortnight now. But I guess they may feel like sorting out the website is a more immediate concern.

[Robbo]

Ignore

• This reply was modified 4 years, 6 months ago by Robbo.
• This reply was modified 4 years, 6 months ago by Robbo.

Dave wrote:

It would be nice to have some confirmation of whether they’re still processing/despatching orders at the moment, or whether that’s effectively been suspended for a fortnight now. But I guess they may feel like sorting out the website is a more immediate concern.

Which is fair, communication is important with stuff like this. They did direct people to their email address, have you tried that?

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Dave

Yeah I’ve emailed them but haven’t heard back yet. Others seem to have tried and received just automated placeholder replies, and their Twitter account seems to have gone quiet since early June.

It’s not the end of the world, just comics after all, but usually I’d expect a major retailer to be a little more communicative with customers when stuff like this is happening for an extended period of time.

Their Twitter feed is full of people complaining about undispatched products and unanswered emails so I think they’re having an absolute nightmare at the moment. I’m waiting for orders myself but I’m just waiting it out at the moment rather than joining the melee.

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Dave

Yeah I feel the same, I don’t want to add to their woes so just waiting and seeing at the moment.

I hope the business isn’t in any serious trouble and can get back to normal soon.

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garjones

garjones wrote:

I doubt it. I mean I have heard the theories that DC may want to opt out of the monthly market and move to digital and trades. It’s plausible but then why go to the effort to help create two new distributors?

If I were conspiracy-minded, I would say that DC knows they can’t stop printing physical comic books and switch to digital only. The current digital sales just aren’t there, and if DC pulls out of physical now, they will face a huge consumer backlash.

So how do they do it? They intentionally sink the direct market by pulling out of Diamond and setting up an alternative distribution system. The net effect will be that Diamond will, overnight, lose one third of its revenue, putting them in a precarious financial position. Shops will end up shuttering because of increased costs. Increased shipping costs and reduced discounts will eat away at retailer margins. Shops will now be faced with double shipping charges from two distributors, and, on top of that, reduced standard discounts with the DC books removed from their Diamond orders. It will then be a race to the bottom, as to what happens first — enough shops will close to make Diamond unprofitable, or Diamond will become insolvent.

We saw this scenario play out during the Hero’s World fiasco in the 90s. The distribution system collapsed, leaving only Diamond standing, and a number of shops went under. If Diamond goes under, it’s going to leave a lot of publishers unpaid and without a means to sell their books, leaving them unable to pay their employees and creditors. Would UCS and Lunar be able to pick up the slack? Will the direct market, as it stands now, be able to survive another Hero’s World?

The only differences between this and Hero’s World is that 1) this is happening following a two-month shut down of the industry while everyone is trying to get back on their feet, and 2) DC doesn’t own Lunar or UCS, though it is unknown what kind of, if any, financial stake they have in the two new distributors.

If the direct market collapses, physical readers will have no choice but to switch over to digital. DC doesn’t face a backlash because comic book fans have been trained to hate Diamond (notice how many are cheering DC’s decision to abandon Diamond) and will blame them for having a monopoly or whatever.

I don’t think that’s what they’re up to, as it would be a big gamble with no guarantee of success, and could even backfire spectacularly if the DM just soldiers on as it has for decades while DC faces a spiral of decreased revenue and increased costs.

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DavidM, Todd

Forbidden Planet will be up and running tomorrow.

We’ve also provided more information on the reopening of our stores on 15th June, and the measures we’re putting in place to keep you and our staff safe: https://t.co/XEw6PYJe2J pic.twitter.com/rhBFl7Brqc

— Forbidden Planet (@ForbiddenPlanet) June 11, 2020

(They just tweeted that a half an hour ago.)

 

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DavidM, Dave

Jason wrote:

I don’t think that’s what they’re up to, as it would be a big gamble with no guarantee of success, and could even backfire spectacularly if the DM just soldiers on as it has for decades while DC faces a spiral of decreased revenue and increased costs.

Yeah it’s a theory with bits of logic but I think probably too elaborate to stack up.

I still think it’s more likely Geppi did something to really piss them off or even Lunar/USC just undercut them.

 

Jason wrote:

Forbidden Planet will be up and running tomorrow.

We’ve also provided more information on the reopening of our stores on 15th June, and the measures we’re putting in place to keep you and our staff safe: https://t.co/XEw6PYJe2J pic.twitter.com/rhBFl7Brqc

— Forbidden Planet (@ForbiddenPlanet) June 11, 2020

(They just tweeted that a half an hour ago.)

 

Great. Obviously posting a mild complaint here is the way to get them to take action.

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Todd

It worked! The power of the Carrier.

Good that my guess seemed to be correct but looking a bit more into their social media responses, it really doesn’t take that much to post a ‘sorry, bear with us’ message. They should have done much better with that.

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njerry, Dave

Midtown Comics in NYC has reopened this week for curbside pick-up. Today I went to get this weeks comics which I had ordered and pre-paid on-line over the weekend; I showed the guy at the door my driver’s license, he spoke into a two-way radio, and another worker brought my books out to me. Very simple and very satisfying. Meanwhile, I’m still waiting for my order from two weeks ago that was supposed to be shipped via UPS on May 27th, but is currently listed as “in transit” on the tracking link. Oh, well…

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DavidM, Todd

Not a huge surprise to me. Didn’t see how Lunar/UCS could get the infrastructure setup internationally.

Good news UK/EU comic fans, Diamond UK will continue to supply new DC comics and graphic novels through 2020!

— Ryan Higgins (@RyanHigginsRyan) June 12, 2020

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Ben, Todd, Dave

Went to Forbidden Planet in Newcastle yesterday. Quite a painless experience. They squirted sanitizer on my hand when I went in, even though I didn’t plan to touch anything except the bag with my order in it. There was no queuing outside, but it was 11am on a Friday so the shop was virtually empty (I think it normally would be at that time, even without current circumstances). Seemed like the full complement of staff was in, though.

Despite telling me they hadn’t had any deliveries since before lockdown, my order still had the last two Legion issues in it so they obviously had something. None of my Dark Horse comics, though. And I don’t order any Marvel so I don’t know what their status is.

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Dave

[Rocket]

DavidM wrote:

my order still had the last two Legion issues in it so they obviously had something

and that is a good thing?

• This reply was modified 4 years, 5 months ago by Rocket.

I’m part of a Legion fan group who rely on me to tell them how awful each new issue is. It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it

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Todd, Vikram

DavidM wrote:

I’m part of a Legion fan group who rely on me to tell them how awful each new issue is. It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it

Thank you for your sacrifice.

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DavidM

Todd wrote:

DavidM wrote:

I’m part of a Legion fan group who rely on me to tell them how awful each new issue is. It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it

Thank you for your sacrifice.

It’s what Superboy would do.

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Todd

DavidM wrote:

Todd wrote:

DavidM wrote:

I’m part of a Legion fan group who rely on me to tell them how awful each new issue is. It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it

Thank you for your sacrifice.

It’s what Superboy would do.

Which Superboy?

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Rocket

Interesting that The Big Bang have written an ode of thanks today to Robert Kirkman. They’ve had one of their busiest days in ages selling and mailing out the new Negan Lives and Firepower as a 160 page OGN for $9.99.

While Marvel and DC have put out dribs and drabs following lockdown and their revenue in the dumps they say he’s made them very happy.

And later this month Image will release the Walking Dead: Alien hardcover collecting the subseries that was previously released only on PanelSyndicate.com, likely boosting LCS sales again. Not a Kirkman-written story, but set in the same universe as his TWD series.