What ever happened to comic shops?

[araym]

I was driving down the road a few days and my favorite comicbook shop (Diversions) is GONE!!! She went out of business... I was so sad, they had some choice comics too well I try and find another comic shop and I found one, but they are not that good... My question is what happened to the comicbook shop? I rarely see them anymore...

[vegasgeek]

i could depend where you live, here we have a lot. but the other day i heard about on store went to where it was and it was gone. i got so pissed, but as i looked further it was just down the stripmall...and no...not a mall on THE strip.

[xxxthundercatxxx]

I don't even have a shop in my town, but when I use to live near Kansas City there were several. They were doing good business but it wasn't because they were selling comic books. They all evolved with the times and hosted Lan parties, several Magic/HeroClix/Warhammer tourneys a week, and they sold a shit load of that merchandise along with every other playable nerd game out there. Comics weren't their main source of revenue anymore and I'm betting a lot of places didnt take that step.

[araym]

man, that sucks!!!

[araym]

i could depend where you live, here we have a lot. but the other day i heard about on store went to where it was and it was gone. i got so pissed, but as i looked further it was just down the stripmall...and no...not a mall on THE strip.

I live in mississippi so I doubt their are any geekdrome listeners in here or any that forum post

[dicknixon]

I love that you called your old shop 'she', like some kind of ship.

There is only one tiny shop where I live, which is only open erractically and staff ed by some creppy old guy and his doubly creepy mother. I've been in a few times and I've never seen anyone else there.

I just wait for trade paperbacks rather than reading monthly books, so it doesn't bother me too much. I can get those online from stores that care about their customers and have a good selection (or from eBay/Amazon).

[tuding]

Well living in London, there are a few comic book stores going strong for years!

Well updated collections and such.

That reminds me i need to buy the new YTLM trade!

[jonathanlondon]

Comic shops happened to comic shops. And a superhero dominated industry. I love the guys in tights books but there's a very narrow audience for that stuff.

Hopefully the types of books we talk about in Comics for People Who Don't Like Comics will turn that around so different audiences will start going into stores and stores will stop covering their windows with posters (which to everyone who isn't devotely interested looks a lot like "KEEP OUT") and start presenting their retail spaces in a more commercial way than a treasure hunt through back issues. It's tough but I think some responsibility rests on the stores. If things were set up more like a Barnes and Nobles or an Old Navy or Virgin Megastore it would present itself a little better. Less dim lighting and clutter and more focus on presentation and showcasing your items.

[soundwave2-0]

Comic shops happened to comic shops. And a superhero dominated industry. I love the guys in tights books but there's a very narrow audience for that stuff.

Hopefully the types of books we talk about in Comics for People Who Don't Like Comics will turn that around so different audiences will start going into stores and stores will stop covering their windows with posters (which to everyone who isn't devotely interested looks a lot like "KEEP OUT") and start presenting their retail spaces in a more commercial way than a treasure hunt through back issues. It's tough but I think some responsibility rests on the stores. If things were set up more like a Barnes and Nobles or an Old Navy or Virgin Megastore it would present itself a little better. Less dim lighting and clutter and more focus on presentation and showcasing your items.

a-f*cking-men

i have a great comic book store. they asked me to do there website and i did...but it would have been nice to have gallery shots of their statues and stuff that looked polished. i think a lot of people that are not aware of design think..put all these statues on a shelf and have hand written tags saying the price and that should be "good enough". that is the down fall of so many ppl and buisnesses..."good enough".

[xxxthundercatxxx]

that is the down fall of so many ppl and buisnesses..."good enough".

Rev3 delayed releases

[originx]

Rev3 delayed releases

You should suck on something for that cough.


Ricola!!!!!!!!!!

[araym]

I love that you called your old shop 'she', like some kind of ship.

There is only one tiny shop where I live, which is only open erractically and staff ed by some creppy old guy and his doubly creepy mother. I've been in a few times and I've never seen anyone else there.

I just wait for trade paperbacks rather than reading monthly books, so it doesn't bother me too much. I can get those online from stores that care about their customers and have a good selection (or from eBay/Amazon).

"she" is the owner...

[kramertron]

I'm the happiest I've ever been comic book wise, and that's due to having two shops within a 1 mile radius of my home. :D

[araym]

Comic shops happened to comic shops. And a superhero dominated industry. I love the guys in tights books but there's a very narrow audience for that stuff.

Hopefully the types of books we talk about in Comics for People Who Don't Like Comics will turn that around so different audiences will start going into stores and stores will stop covering their windows with posters (which to everyone who isn't devotely interested looks a lot like "KEEP OUT") and start presenting their retail spaces in a more commercial way than a treasure hunt through back issues. It's tough but I think some responsibility rests on the stores. If things were set up more like a Barnes and Nobles or an Old Navy or Virgin Megastore it would present itself a little better. Less dim lighting and clutter and more focus on presentation and showcasing your items.

I don't consider Barnes and Noble a comicshop...

[tokenuser]

I don't consider Barnes and Noble a comicshop...I think you miss the point. Barnes and Noble isn't a comic shop ... but comic shops need to present a better retail/marketing face and make themselves more "accessible" to people that aren't into the latest spandex wearing hero from DC or Marvel.

Besides - B&N have often got a much better selection of Trades (both "traditional" and Manga) than most comic stores, for far more obscure or diverse titles.

My favorite comic shop was Minotaur (http://www.minotaur.com.au/site.asp) on Bourke Street in Melbourne. They no longer advertise themselves as a comic store, but as a "Pop Culture Megastore". And (last time I was there several years ago) they have 3 floors of comics, collectables (figurines/models, and gaming cards), a great selection of scifi and TV oriented DVDs, and games (role playing games, not computer). Checking out their website - it looks like they have really diversified - I guess that is a survival trait.

[jonathanlondon]

That place sounds awesome. And yes, that's what I meant with Barnes and Nobles. I don't think I could open a comic book store that didn't also carry movies and video games and cool shit across the board. Putting all of your eggs in a basket that is that up and down is just too scary, as much as I love them more than anything...

[satansmagichat]

Comic shops happened to comic shops. And a superhero dominated industry. I love the guys in tights books but there's a very narrow audience for that stuff.

Seriously. Either the indy stuff and non super-hero stuff like Vertigo needs to get more appeal, or it's just gonna stay this way. Another big problem is the fact that the comics industry is dominantly run by white straight men. And the audience is mostly white, straight men. They need more alternative stuff, instead of tights, unproportional female body parts, and homophobic characters (at least, I would assume the characters are homophobic seeing as how I'm sure most of them have never seen homosexuals, except for the new Batwoman. And let's face it, even she's marketed towards straight men.)

[sloppybunny]

I think the reason for comics stores slowly dwindling is quite many.

Firstly I think the collector market is kind of ruining it in the long run where people don't buy the comics for the stories or characters, but more for an investment, so they'll buy the rarest cover and don't buy anything between that and the next anniversary edition of the book.

I also don't find comics disposable enough. A 32 page superhero comic costs around 5 to 6 bucks aussie. The same book would have costed me around $3.25 if I looked around the late 90s. Mind you I think the books in the states only went up 50 cents. I seriously think though comics should just cost a $1 in the states and $2 here at most. I don't think it's ridiculous, I remember I used to publish books on a small run and sold them for $4. There's no reason for diamond to take such a massive cut from the cover price (It's around 60-70%) and unit price if you print in the millions becomes pretty small.

The thing is, that as a 27 year old I can afford a $6 comic easy, but as 7 year old picking a comic for that price is possible, but nobody buys one comic. So it's a hard task to have a 7 year old spend $100 to discover that Batman is his/her favorite comic. Since prices have been in my opinion too high for over 10 years, and this mad collector market was in the early 90's (right?), here's the consequence. All these superhero movies proove there's nothing wrong with the actual characters.

As for the non superhero comics angle. It's working in France. There's plenty of comic shops there, and even the Virgin megastore has a level dedicated to comics. Although the Angouleme BD festival is no where near as crazy as I hear San Diego is, it's 100% comics and I hear that they sell over a 100 000 tickets per event. I dunno about that, but when I went you needed a shuttle bus to get around and they even have comic stands in the church! :) They also have a big guest list from the States, Japan and Korea :)

[hive]

This is exactly what the comic book store I went to looked like. I hadn't been there in like ten years and the comics were reduced to at most 1/10th of their former numbers and they were all crappy and obviously read before, strewn across the shelf like used condoms.

I think Jon's idea of a comic book store with comics and video games/dvds would be the best way to go nowadays, but I think a lot of people don't have the balls, or don't see the difference between one of those and Barnes and Noble. Although a SMALL shop with a bunch of comic books and some cool video games and DVDs I think would definitely find its place in geek society, and would do well!

I think the retailers are losing faith in comic books.

[psbp516]

Why can't you just buy comics online? That's what I did last week to get all the civil war comics. I didn't have to pay shipping because I had it delivered to the comic shop, but shipping is only a couple of extra bucks...

[djhyjak]

I think the days of the comicbook shop are gone, you will no longer find those lil mom and pops that are exclusively comics. but i think there is room for a successor thats like a small Barns & Noble.

[inthraller]

Why can't you just buy comics online? That's what I did last week to get all the civil war comics. I didn't have to pay shipping because I had it delivered to the comic shop, but shipping is only a couple of extra bucks...

I have also begun buying comics online through a subscription service. The ONE comic shop in my area sucks. The owner is really unfriendly and half the time he is out of the issues that I came to get (and I go on Wednesday when they come out). I've wondered if he had some kind of pull service that would hold comics for people who come in alot but he always acts like you're bothering him to just check out so I never asked. So now my comics will come every two weeks and I'll pay about $2.00 for shipping. Sometimes a comic shop deserves to die.

[djhyjak]

We have a great shop here in the Lou call Star Clipper its very hipster like and has an Indi Comics focus.

[ofcgrl]

Sometimes a comic shop deserves to die.

Nuh uh!!

It's the comic store owner that should be drawn and quartered. They are the one that have let the comic customer down!

The internet, Barnes and Noble, and the technique of running a comic shop have been the down fall of the comic store.

With people buying books off the internet and even reading back issues of off Marvel (and possibly DC) sites people feel no need to go out to the comic store anymore. It's a matter of convenience.

Barnes and Noble has a lot of trade paperbacks, but it's all newer stuff that stays in line with the releases of comic movies by comic companies. When the Spiderman, Superman, Sin City, and Hellboy movies came out there was a glut of those comics at Barnes and Noble. Little Jimmy didn't have to hunt for Spiderman comics at some dark dungeon of a shop. Mommy just took him to Barnes and Noble while she ordered a vente double half-caf from Starbucks.

I've been to some comic shops that are really well kept. They have a nice balance of comics, cards, manga, and movie memorabilia. I've also been to dungeons that reeked of mildew and sold 15 year old used paperbacks (novels). It's like you're going into their basement to look at their private collection. Creepy! So there is the factor of comic store ownership. If a new comic reader goes into a dark dreary store he might not want to go back there and prefer the internet. Enough of those types of responses and poof! No more comic shop.

I buy from the internet. I also buy from Barnes and Noble. But there is no greater satisfaction than going into a comic shop, browsing through the titles, picking up your regulars, and, who knows, maybe discovering something new. When I do go I make a day of it. Nothing like a quiet Saturday after buying your haul at the comic shop!! :D

[satansmagichat]

I think the reason for comics stores slowly dwindling is quite many.

Firstly I think the collector market is kind of ruining it in the long run where people don't buy the comics for the stories or characters, but more for an investment, so they'll buy the rarest cover and don't buy anything between that and the next anniversary edition of the book.

I also don't find comics disposable enough. A 32 page superhero comic costs around 5 to 6 bucks aussie. The same book would have costed me around $3.25 if I looked around the late 90s. Mind you I think the books in the states only went up 50 cents. I seriously think though comics should just cost a $1 in the states and $2 here at most. I don't think it's ridiculous, I remember I used to publish books on a small run and sold them for $4. There's no reason for diamond to take such a massive cut from the cover price (It's around 60-70%) and unit price if you print in the millions becomes pretty small.

The thing is, that as a 27 year old I can afford a $6 comic easy, but as 7 year old picking a comic for that price is possible, but nobody buys one comic. So it's a hard task to have a 7 year old spend $100 to discover that Batman is his/her favorite comic. Since prices have been in my opinion too high for over 10 years, and this mad collector market was in the early 90's (right?), here's the consequence. All these superhero movies proove there's nothing wrong with the actual characters.

As for the non superhero comics angle. It's working in France. There's plenty of comic shops there, and even the Virgin megastore has a level dedicated to comics. Although the Angouleme BD festival is no where near as crazy as I hear San Diego is, it's 100% comics and I hear that they sell over a 100 000 tickets per event. I dunno about that, but when I went you needed a shuttle bus to get around and they even have comic stands in the church! :) They also have a big guest list from the States, Japan and Korea :)

Lots of really good points. Now I'm going to rip them apart ;)

The collector thing hasn't been that big (at least in the states) since the mid 90s. There are still some comics that come out and go for a ridiculous amount (Wolverine Origins, anyone?) but for the most part, I believe most people going into a comic shop are actually buying the comics to read.

Also, it does suck for kids that can't afford to follow a storyline for a year or more, but that is why they have trades, and I think more people need to find out about these.

And yeah, comics are big in France (I guess, since you told me so). But don't forget the biggest publisher of "comic books": Japan. I know someone's gonna yell at me for calling Manga comic books, but I don't even care, because at their core they are the same idea (putting pictures with words). The only real difference is that Japan doesn't have the oversaturation of Super Heroes that we do. I mean, we have a lot of the more personal stuff (like Blankets or Strangers in Paradise) and things that run the gammet from any genre. I just honestly believe that this fact isn't known as well to those that still think comics are for kids and all about men in tights.

But, with the popularity of serialised shows like Lost or Veronica Mars becoming more popular, the possibility for comics to make a comeback is all the more present. I mean, comics share more with television than with any other form of media.

[dicknixon]

"she" is the owner...

That makes so much more sense, but is somehow less nerdy.

[sloppybunny]

Lots of really good points. Now I'm going to rip them apart ;)

The collector thing hasn't been that big (at least in the states) since the mid 90s. There are still some comics that come out and go for a ridiculous amount (Wolverine Origins, anyone?) but for the most part, I believe most people going into a comic shop are actually buying the comics to read.

Also, it does suck for kids that can't afford to follow a storyline for a year or more, but that is why they have trades, and I think more people need to find out about these.

And yeah, comics are big in France (I guess, since you told me so). But don't forget the biggest publisher of "comic books": Japan. I know someone's gonna yell at me for calling Manga comic books, but I don't even care, because at their core they are the same idea (putting pictures with words). The only real difference is that Japan doesn't have the oversaturation of Super Heroes that we do. I mean, we have a lot of the more personal stuff (like Blankets or Strangers in Paradise) and things that run the gammet from any genre. I just honestly believe that this fact isn't known as well to those that still think comics are for kids and all about men in tights.

But, with the popularity of serialised shows like Lost or Veronica Mars becoming more popular, the possibility for comics to make a comeback is all the more present. I mean, comics share more with television than with any other form of media.

Just because I say comics are big in France doesn't make it so ;), but that's the impression I got.

I totally agree that 'Manga' is just a japanese term for comics. Labelling it as something separate is just silly, just because they all look the same (And they so do). As unvaried they are in artistic vision they are are very varied in content. Still from my short visits to Japan I got the impression that comics were sold everywhere. Also they have these huge phonebook style comics for 200 yen (Around $1.50US?) that are like 400 or 500 pages long. The more popular titles get their own little volumes or GN made. I've seen an english version of shonen jump here, but they charge like $12 for it. No where near as accessible and disposable as in Japan. Also they don't have these 32 page panthlet things Americans publish (I personally like them, even if it is too expensive).

How much would a regular trade go for? $12US? That's cheaper then buying things up to date, but I still find it a tad too espensive for a 7 year old (You have to get them young if you want them to grow up with them). Especially since you could get a second hand PS2 or XBOX game for that price.

I remember when I was first introduced to comics we had around 5 stores in the city (That's what we call our downtown area in Sydney), then we had 5 more in the suburbs and a 24 hour comic shop at FOX Studios. I was told that they kept the shop open 24 hours so Keanu Reeves and Samuel L Jackson could visit it without getting harrased by fans. I don't know if that's true, but that's what I was told by some trustworthy geeks down the pub. Now we have 2 in the city and only two in the suburbs I know of. Our main store KINGS comics sells a bunch of toys, magazines posters and t-shirts aswell, but I figured that was normal for a comic store, no?

PS. I've been to the store Tokenuser speaks off. It's really cool, I bought all my Tankgirl trades there :)

[blacksymbiote]

There was this amazing comic shop near where I live called Sci-Fi Comics, and they had a whole Diner as part of their store. They made the best burgers, and they even had a secret burger you could order, but wasn't on the menu! You only found out about it by word of mouth from other customers who had been going there a long time. But recently I guess they weren't making enough money, and they closed the Diner part down, and shrunk the store down to less than half what it was before. Now my friends and I have lost our hang out spot. It really sucks.

[satansmagichat]

Just ...

blahblahblah...

PS. I've been to the store Tokenuser speaks off. It's really cool, I bought all my Tankgirl trades there :)

So essentially we're in agreement about everything but price. But you know what? You're right. 3 Bucks for a ten minute read and 12 bucks for 6 comics collected is a pretty shitty deal. Although, there is the fact that they're using higher quality paper and ink. I mean, comics are MUCH prettier now than they were ten years ago, despite being twice as expensive. I don't know too much about Diamond's cut of the profits, but 60-70% is pretty retarded.

PS. I cut your quote short so you'd know I was responding to you, not out of disrespect ;)

[sloppybunny]

So essentially we're in agreement about everything but price. But you know what? You're right. 3 Bucks for a ten minute read and 12 bucks for 6 comics collected is a pretty shitty deal. Although, there is the fact that they're using higher quality paper and ink. I mean, comics are MUCH prettier now than they were ten years ago, despite being twice as expensive. I don't know too much about Diamond's cut of the profits, but 60-70% is pretty retarded.

PS. I cut your quote short so you'd know I was responding to you, not out of disrespect ;)

no offence taken ;) I'm worse when I talk it's even more blah blah, but I jiggle.

N E way, although print is now lot's prettier, since it's gone digital it's a lot simpler process (I used to publish comics here in the late 90's up till middle of last year, they were shit though I made most of them). My first comics they used to make these plates for the artwork, then they went through these huge press machines. Now I just hand over a bunch of Tiff files and bob's my uncle. With bigger print run it's different, in that a normal docutech can't really print out 200 thousand comics in a short amount of time. Still when I printed my comics back on the big printer it costed me less money to print 5000 comics then it would have to print 500, mainly due to set up costs and the interuption it would have made to the production line, also the bigger the print run the more drastically discounted the cost was. I assume it based on these experiences and talking to publishers of magazines, that a unit price for something that gets a print run ofsomething over 100 thousand you would look at around 20 cents at most. Even if you pay an art team say 10 000 bucks all up for an issue if you devide that by the print run that's only 10 cents per issue. If the comics had their prices cut all over the board for a full year, and had a big campaign going, sales would go through the roof and easily reach 1 million units, and what they loose in cover price they can make up in charging premium for ad space and merchandise.

It would totally kill small press though, which really does cost money as there's no ads in indy books and small print run costs a shitload of cash.

As for diamond. They are a monopoly and another evil that's ruining shops slowly.

**** I'm boring

Oh, although this is what I dug up, someone might point out that I'm totally wrong on this. I also allways bring up kids, but people need to grow up with something to feel attached, and I hardly see kids read comics anymore. I think people drove this 'comics ain't for kids' angle a bit too far. I mean spiderman is a dude swinging around in pijamas. Why take him seriously? I met too many poeple that do.

[lordstandley]

When I lived in Portland I had many shops to choose from all over town.
Now being in a small town, I'm stuck with no shop and having to go online to purchase anything I want. Which is ok I guess, but nothing beats going into a shop and looking around at all the books.
The problemn with comic shops, especially in small towns, is that the amount of people who buy them is a very small number. So you need a pretty decent sized cvommunity to keep them above the black. Growing up in a small town we had several comic shops come and go with no chance of survival. There were alot of people buying, but not nearly enough to float the bill for the entire shop.

Man I cant wiat to get back to a big city again.

So where does everyone buy online? I usually go through eBay or www.tfaw.com
They are a local company and have a nice shop in Beaverton very close to my house, when I lived there.

[tokenuser]

Now being in a small town, I'm stuck with no shop and having to go online to purchase anything I want. Which is ok I guess, but nothing beats going into a shop and looking around at all the books. The problem with online comic shopping (and books for that matter) is that you don't get to browse - and perhap find something out there that catches your eye. I got hooked on Books of Magic - it was agreat series that I would otherwise not have gotten into if it wasn't for exploring the shelves at Minotaur. When you are online, you are either just ordering what you want, or looking at a store home page with what THEY want you to see.
Our main store KINGS comics sells a bunch of toys, magazines posters and t-shirts aswell, but I figured that was normal for a comic store, no?

PS. I've been to the store Tokenuser speaks off. It's really cool, I bought all my Tankgirl trades there :):D as a teenager growing up (and going to Uni) in Wollongong, we made a monthly pilgrimage up to Sydney for Kings Comics, and to Red Eye records (underground CD/Record shop - great for indie, bootlegs, and imports). To me, Kings *defined* the old school comic shop. Cluttered, cramped space, smelling like news print ... while Minotaur was the shiny new kid, a much better retail space.

[inthraller]

So where does everyone buy online? I usually go through eBay or www.tfaw.com
They are a local company and have a nice shop in Beaverton very close to my house, when I lived there.

I started using www.scifiGenre.com it's a pretty good service- free bags and boards, options for shipping subscriptions weekly, biweekly, or monthly, fair shipping. However, I must admit there is a little something lost when you're not browsing a real comic shop.

[araym]

I'll check it.

[araym]

I just really miss Diversions *sniffle*

[araym]

knowing the shit that happens in this town It will be a hunting place or some bullshit like that...damn rednecks... no offense to anyone

[klitzy]

Yeah...I have to drive an hour to get to my nearest comic shop.

[sloppybunny]

:D as a teenager growing up (and going to Uni) in Wollongong, we made a monthly pilgrimage up to Sydney for Kings Comics, and to Red Eye records (underground CD/Record shop - great for indie, bootlegs, and imports). To me, Kings *defined* the old school comic shop. Cluttered, cramped space, smelling like news print ... while Minotaur was the shiny new kid, a much better retail space.
Kings has gone through an image change! Although still nothing on minotaur. It's now on Pitt Street and open to all. Did you ever visit Comics Kingdom or Land Beyond beyond? Now they were dodgy as sin, Kingdom even smelled like urine, and the staff were heaps mean.

Anyways, why hike up to Sydney? Wollongong had phantom Zone back then.

[satansmagichat]

Yeah, sloppybunny, you make a good case. We should all just band together and boycott Diamond. I dont know how, cuz that would mean not getting comics. But still.

[sloppybunny]

Yeah, sloppybunny, you make a good case. We should all just band together and boycott Diamond. I dont know how, cuz that would mean not getting comics. But still.

That's what sucks, because you can't boycott Diamond without boycotting comics and shops. I've met a diamond representative before and politely asked for a 'please explain'. It's something to do with shipping costs and printing Previews (Which is bullshit, as the cover price and ad space should pay for that thing itself if they are not making a profit on the thing allready). It's true shipping is quite expensive. I think the courier service they provide is quite cheap though as they also have deals with printers that get's them all sorts of discounts on delivery. I don't know their exact deal with big companies like Marvel are, but for small press they are absolutely cruel. I remember the hell one has to go through to get 1000 comics to them only to have your next order halved and halved again. All the advertisement you get is a phonebook style listing and a code.

I think Marvel or/and DC should distribute the things themselves and cut out the middle man. Or somebody else jump up to the plate.Or who cares, I'm old I have a job and I can afford comics :p

[tokenuser]

Kings has gone through an image change! Although still nothing on minotaur. It's now on Pitt Street and open to all. Did you ever visit Comics Kingdom or Land Beyond beyond? Now they were dodgy as sin, Kingdom even smelled like urine, and the staff were heaps mean.

Anyways, why hike up to Sydney? Wollongong had phantom Zone back then.I haven't lived in Oz for over 9 years ... and left NSW for Vic in 95, so I haven't seen Kings upgrade. We occassionally went to comics Kingdom ... and hated it.

But, damn - you are good on the Phantom Zone call ... we used to go there as well, but some friends liked the more obscure stuff they could get at Kings ... and it meant a trip to Red Eye as well :)

[sloppybunny]

I haven't lived in Oz for over 9 years ... and left NSW for Vic in 95, so I haven't seen Kings upgrade. We occassionally went to comics Kingdom ... and hated it.

But, damn - you are good on the Phantom Zone call ... we used to go there as well, but some friends liked the more obscure stuff they could get at Kings ... and it meant a trip to Red Eye as well :)

I used to publish comics, so I had to know where the comic stores in Australia. Also some other small press guys got the wholecomic store listings. There's a grand total of something like 26 stores in All of Australia. In hights I think we had around 48. So I went the Newsagent route, and even a no name distributor (Who carried my books) had 900 newsagents on their books, but the total count in the country I think is something around 10 000.

Other random facts about KINGS comics. There was at some stage 3 stores. One in Penrith, the above mentioned City and the I'm pretty sure I mentioned the 24 hour one at Fox Studios (It no longer exists)> Kings moved places Around 3 years ago. In 1995 I thought comics were dumb. Well super hero comics anyway, as Asterix and Obelix allways rockes as did the Smurfs and Garfield.

I know one of the Phantom Zone's co-owners' girlfriend. She out geeks anybody I know in person, even Moshi_what.

[araym]

I used to publish comics, so I had to know where the comic stores in Australia. Also some other small press guys got the wholecomic store listings. There's a grand total of something like 26 stores in All of Australia. In hights I think we had around 48. So I went the Newsagent route, and even a no name distributor (Who carried my books) had 900 newsagents on their books, but the total count in the country I think is something around 10 000.

Other random facts about KINGS comics. There was at some stage 3 stores. One in Penrith, the above mentioned City and the I'm pretty sure I mentioned the 24 hour one at Fox Studios (It no longer exists)> Kings moved places Around 3 years ago. In 1995 I thought comics were dumb. Well super hero comics anyway, as Asterix and Obelix allways rockes as did the Smurfs and Garfield.

I know one of the Phantom Zone's co-owners' girlfriend. She out geeks anybody I know in person, even Moshi_what.

what was the name?

[sloppybunny]

what was the name?



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comics_in_Australia

Here's some wikipedia info on Aussie comics. My name's Alex Major, and it'll have a listing of my comics there ;) Is that what you were asking? BTW the first comics I referr to were called Quay-Line. Not popular at all, but it did have an angry Kebab Man :) and a cat!

The distributor I went through was called internews, but they only suppled Australian Newsagents. I never personally went through Diamond as I saw what some others, Mainly the guys from Phosphorescent went through. I made lots of enquiries and I wanted to find the least risk for this investment, and I couldn't find something that was worth my money.Seriously, tthe print cost and the 60-70% cut is hardly value. If I was born ten years later, I would go all on-line, now I'm just too lazy to learn internet :p

I only sold my comics in America at Wizardworld at Chicago. The con was heaps of fun :)

[spikedtropicaldrink]

We have a pretty nice store in Salt Lake. Night Flight comics. Its conected to the Salt Lake City Library that everyone goes to see. Its a nice shop, I like it a lot more than the places I used to go as a kid.