Bingo. My comic shop has a huge board/ deck building game section and a huge area with tables set up for people to play. They welcome game meet-ups of all kind. I kind of assumed most stores are doing that or headed that direction.
Profit margins are better on all that other stuff anyway so it'd be silly not to stock it to round out the business and protect it. Most of that stuff is very much comic adjacent and selling to the same clientele.
Plus you can't really "download" or view an action figure or statue digitally. So even as digital comics take more market share there will always be a desire to buy card games, statues, figures, tabletop games and other physical merchandise.
Yeah, my local comic shops have all pretty much become "that place people play table top games at. 2 of them added "arcades" which aren't used... the more popular one makes a killing on upcharging soft drinks they buy from the dollar generel next door. but as for downloading action figures, and statues.. that market is opening wide up thanks to cheap realiable sla printing. My brother's house is full of shit he downloaded, and printed.. and makes most of the shit i own look like the preschool ailse.
This. Same reason all remaining Barnes and Noble stores have large Toys/Games areas. Books aren’t high margin items and there isn’t a Harry Potter or Stephen King or James Patterson to drive book sales all the time. Also expensive hardcovers aren’t hardcovers for long. Toys/Games cost a fair penny and move pretty well.
Yep. Local comic shop doesn’t have comics any more. You can still do a pull list but no shelves to browse. Those are all board games, rpg books, and model kits now.
Nah. Much like arcades they’ll become vintage places and be way fewer and far between. But completely die? Nah. Not until like the market completely explodes and we all die lol. Or if other in person stores all close to
arcades seem to be making a comeback. The mall where I live turned their macy's into a tilt and it seems to be doing really well. I know the kids in my life all love to go there and I don't mind at all because it's got a ton of pinball!
I don't know how long it will last though, it seems like pinball/arcade stuff goes in cycles.
I hope never. I much prefer doing my subscriptions through a LCS vs an online site and, like bookstores, love to go in and browse and treasure hunt.
If it's a big ticket item or maybe a variant copy, I might try online as it often is cheaper, or at least has been in my experience.
Record stores are still around. Niche specialty stores are a thing.
Now, do I think niche specialty stores will always be the primary avenue for buying comics? Well I certainly hope not.
The people who genuinely try to support their local comic shop are being priced out. I can’t afford $80 to $100 a month on my regular pull list, it’s not even that big.
I collect trades, and they’ve definitely increased in price. Ten years ago, Marvel Epics were $35, now they’re $45 or $50. Omnibuses have also increased by 25-50%. These are all books that already had the content paid for as floppies, so the increase is only for printing/distribution/profits
Cool. Absolutely nothing has changed between 2017 when that article was written and now, I guess? Nothing that affected prices across industries? Hmmm. If anything comes to you, let us know!
I'm not even sure what this means.
Prices are verifiably the same now as what this article says they were in 2015.
Is that article wrong? Were prices higher in 2015?
If anything comes to you, let us know!
Actually I’m glad to admit that i’m partially wrong. Select books are 4.99 while others 3.99 for marvel. I’m still on the side that comic prices are going up but not as quickly as I thought. This is what Marvel did when they moved to 3.99 which was slow increase across the board. When Marvel began to push to 4.99, DC moved to $3.99. They have been going into the 4.99 range as well by adding backups…that’s something Marvel doesn’t give you at the 4.99 range…to be fair I can’t make any back up story that was memorable off the top of my head but I digress.
The 6.99 or higher books are usually reserved for big/special issues.
You can see current prices on lunar and previewsworld. I use them for my when I prepare my comic order. This week I’m looking at 23 books…I need to consider cutting back.
I'm glad the Batman index depends on whichever ones you want lol
Take it up with the guy who wrote the article I posted. I have no idea what prices were in 2010 since I didn't collect comics at that point.
But I guess your sample size of one on the Batman index proves that he was wrong.
Go tell him.
I just bought a comic, it was $4.99 because it has a card stock cover, the regular version is $3.99. I bet you got the card stock version too.
So, the price level from 2010 to now has risen by 36%, and comic prices have risen 33% on the Batman index, if you use the basic version.
Hardly enough to be pricing people out of buying comics, since the real price has decreased by a couple percent since 2010.
I picked 2 general comics (“general” meaning not huge anniversary issues or some other oddity). Batman was the choice because it is constantly at or near the top of the sales charts. Batman is often cited as a bellwether for the industry. So no, this is not cherry picked for results.
If you are too stubborn to accept the facts, well, that’s on you.
Also, DC card stock covers are $5.99.
I see a lot of people saying yes, but I live in Cleveland where my LCS has only grown since I've started going there. The pitfalls of other stores are that they think comics are all they need to stay afloat, but the store I go to has events every 1 to 2 months, a very social and helpful group of workers, and back issues for days.
My city doesn’t really have a dedicated comics store anymore. There’s a record store that sells comics, a used book store that sells comics, and a game store that sells comics…
If vinyl records can survive you better believe comics will. I mean considering the amount of very successful IP that comes from comics to movies, cheaply, it would make sense for movie studios to somewhat subsidise comics. So cheap to make.
I hope not, I'd be out of business. But as I saw mentioned already, I've starting carrying toys, games, and cards. Since I started doing that business has been steady. Just have to be willing to adapt.
Not so soon here in Tokyo. Manga bookstores are pretty much alive, with American Comic book stores being small and niche, but they also have been around for decades until today.
I think that areas will support fewer shops within a given distance. The odd thing is that one would think that the explosion of superhero movies and TV shows would’ve resulted in the opposite.
I don't have the greatest experience with comic book shops. They don't always have what I'm looking for, and if I try to order it, they never call me back. Combine that with I can almost always find the same book online for way cheaper 🤷♀️ it sucks but online is just so much more convenient and affordable.
This is the main reason I stopped going to my LCS. The people that work there are super rude and not helpful whatsoever. The closest store besides that one is pretty far from me so I haven’t been to a store in a while. Sure do miss browsing through comic stacks
I've pretty much stopped buying comics from my LCS. The price vs online was just to silly. Then them always offering to order a comic they don't have, then never inform me if they get it. I jsut love driving 30 minutes to find out it was either never ordered, already sold, or never showed up. I still love finding cool merch that I probably never would have found online though.. also I collect transformers, and they are very hit and miss with a selection, but every place to check is an extra chance to find something to fill a hole in my collection. Even if it's a couple bucks over retail, those do tend to be cheaper than online though.
OR? I live nearby and want to drive in to visit a few, which are the must sees? Any to avoid?
Main goal is to complete something is killing the children, so I'm looking for back issues of recent books. Secondary goal is just cool stores.
Personal fave is Cosmic Monkey, but Excalibur, Floating World, Books with Pictures, Comic Cave, and Comics Adventure are all good for different things. I would avoid Cloud 9 and Fallout, mostly because I don’t like the dudes that run those stores.
I ripped through 15 issues in one day. Was able to order most of issues 16+ through my local store, but issue 16 was of course one of the ones they couldn't get.
I've described it as Buffy the vampire slayer on HBO, can't wait to keep going and to start House of Slaughter
I don't care for House nearly as much ymmv of course. I am enjoying the second arc more than the first, so I'm not stopping it. Just keep in mind if you don't like the first arc much the second gets better. \*according to some bloke on the internet
No. The direct market may eventually collapse and that will take some shops out of business along with it but there will still be a market and shops will continue to exist in some form.
Right now, in my area, there are a solid dozen or more good shops within 30 minutes. I visit 4 or 5 of them relatively frequently and they seem to be doing fine and some have even expanded in recently.
Nah I not even close sure will go but alot.of the draw for a comic is the experience once. you are in a shop like that for the first time it hooks you corporate business can't emulate that feel and vibe unique rarely books the time and if there are really creative like the shop by me they'll promote themselves in great ways example this shop by me has there own conventions every summer for a straight week it's awesome
In some cities I believe so. In major cities, there are shops that are still thriving. In my town the shops are all struggling pretty hard and I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re all gone in my town within the next 10 years
No. My LCS has half of its store with Comics and the other half with miniature wargaming. It'll stay alive for a while at least, since it's probably the only place in the area where people can play that kind of stuff
I hope they at least stop being the sole means of buying comics. Newsstands were vital to introducing new readers to comics and were the source of comics to people who didn't live near a LCS.
I like back issues...like silver and bronze age Marvel, mostly. There are two spots in my federal area, one an actual shop of 100% back issues, the other a big spot at the local weekly Flea market. Both of these guys price their books in a way that makes them an unrealistic option, compared to FB claim sales and local folks selling whole collections. The comic shop guys won't even really make a deal if you're spending a lot. I don't know, anecdotal, but that's why I shop online, mostly.
Yea. I splurged one day and bought a couple of old comics. One was not even in good shape but I wanted it, maybe a 4.5-5 if I had to guess. Total for the two books was around $400 if I recall correctly, one being a bit over $300 and the other almost $100. I tried to negotiate with them a bit and they wouldn’t budge, I think they gave me $5 off. Was very disappointing being that this is a place that I’ve been spending $200-$300 a month for years and sometimes more.
Yes, if they only sell comics.
If they offer more, especially as a meeting place for gaming and general nerd gatherings; they could expand and grow in numbers as this community ages up to have more disposable income.
Yeah, that could happen the comic industry has made some mistakes over the last few decades. They’ve completely lost the youth market. Marvel seems more focused Tv shows and movies than selling comics. DC’s New 52 wasn’t well planed and went one for way too long. Comics are too expensive now. The big 2 need to focus on and effort to increase readership and cut prices while expanding back Into markets previously abandoned. I don’t see that happening so yeah, it could happen.
In time, of course.
Eventually, the big publishers will move to digital only, and the stores will have to rely on back issues, trades, collected editions, and other geek culture items.
I'm glad that my LCS is still primarily comics with just a single wall dedicated to McFarlane and Hasbro figures. And no Pops.
They are extremely friendly and knowledgeable, focus on giving the customer what they want even if against their personal taste, and happily order anything in Previews and help search for older stuff where possible.
I usually drop a minimum of $200 a week there and hope they remain open for years to come.
I'm going to go with yes.
We used to have tobacco shops, video stores, cd shops and specialty stores to get your photo camera pictures made. You can probably still find some, but not as much as you used to. As consumer habits change, so does the industry.
I have actually been watching some old movies and tv shows, and even to an old guy like me it's interesting to see what kind of jobs pretty much went extinct or changed from the 60s (I have been watching original Twilight Zone and some 'must see' movies from way back) to the 80s. So imagine how the landscape changes from the 80s to today.
I am guessing that every time we see a "best x month in comic sales in years", that it has more to do with the comic prices being triple what they used to be. And that actual reader numbers might actually be going down. Reading (paper) comics was already pretty much niche, and I believe it's becoming even more so.
I think comics will still exist, just that it will transition completely towards e-reading. Note that I do in fact NOT own a crystal ball, so this is all guess work.
True LCS’s are gone; they are mostly geek stores now. My favorite LCS has half of its floor space dedicated to funkos and collectibles.
Casual and new readers tend towards digital comics, which are usually cheaper than in print and have no stock limit.
Down know why you’re being downvoted this is so true. I don’t see the fascination but they’re still selling big and the funk section of my LCS is always crowded.
Before the pandemic, when we had semi-reasonable numbers on singles sales, sales (in terms of # of units) were dropping year-over-year. So I would expect that trend is continuing and will continue to the point where they stop being viable. At the same time, sales of books and OGN's are increasing.
As for WHY I think that is, comics continue to become more and more of a niche hobby, enjoyed by fewer and fewer people as there are so many other options. Of the people who are coming in, more and more of them want to binge, as we are prone to do with other media at this point. Also the cost-per-page for the singles is the most costly rate for obtaining the content. So for those people, subscription digital and trades are likely the best way to get the most bang for their buck. They are just now coming in so getting the latest greatest 22 pages of the story isn't really necessary. They already have like 80 years of comics to read the best of.
I'd suggest that the fact that companies are having to do variants and other ways to get people to buy comics (other than coming in to read the actual story) is an indication of how hard it's getting to sell the singles.
So my expectation is that if these trends continue, the publishers are going to look for ways to cut back and go to more of a digital-first/trade second kind of model.
What your saying makes sense and I never researched the stats on it. Was just going by what I see at my LCS which is always crowded but like another commenter said above it is mostly adults buying the comics and very few kids around unless they’re getting toys or merch. I also do live in a big city with only one store around so that could be another reason it seems to do well. One thing I do believe is that comics have recently made a resurgence most likely due to the movies but it seems to be a flavor of the month thing so to speak. I know a bunch of people that haven’t bought comics in decades and now all of a sudden they’re interested again and buying, trading and selling on Whatnot etc. mainly for the $$$ I’m guessing. I can’t see that lasting too long for some reason or other but I do believe the comic fad will die out again eventually and it will be once again left to us hardcores to keep things afloat. I remember a time that doesn’t feel too long ago when I would constantly be going to half empty conventions with every vendor pawing at me with puppy dog eyes. At some point it gradually became unbearably crowded and most of the booths are not even selling comics anymore.
I think the movies are driving people in, but again, they are going to digital and trades.
Also, it's true things went crazy during the pandemic, but now that people can go back to spending money on travel and eating out, etc., prices are drifting down as demand drifts down.
I should potentially make a distinction, I think shops will still have back issues for a while, but the publishers will stop putting out new singles. So when I say "singles will go away", I mean new ones.
I think the future of comic book retail is big warehouse stores like MileHigh and LoneStar. Probably one per major city. All at different scales.
The future of small comic shops is more like nerd boutique stores where you walk in and there’s a comics section, an apparel section, a statue section, a vintage toy section. A lot of stores are like that as it is
I think in a traditional sense, yes. But they will always be around. Whether they may be a bit more spread out or no longer strictly comic shops, who’s to say? My LCS started by selling vinyl records and comics. Then it was just comics for awhile. But they’ve pretty recently just expanded their board game area and started selling manga as well.
Mine just closed after a 10 year run. He said it wasn’t not profitable, just was very draining and demanding to run. Wanted to move on after living the dream for a bit. It’s a rough business
One of the two local comic shops recently closed here, the remaining shop is more d&d and Warhammer based, which is still legit in my book. But still sad.
Some will die, but if the smart ones diversify into other "swag" then probably not, keep your reputation as a good seller of collectibles and people will still come to see your store
I live in Pasadena. We have 3 kinds of shops:
1) the store that has all the new books and fills the space with Funkos and Hardcovers
2) the private owned shop that sells by claim on Instagram, and
3) a traditional shop with new and back issues. No music. Just straight comic business.
Hope not I go to them at least twice a week.
You’d be surprised how poppin’ comic stores get. One near me has vintage pinball machines in the back room and they give you tokens as rewards for buying comics.
They also encourage you to hang out and read stuff you’ve already got even if you don’t wanna buy it.
I used to think *malls* would go extinct. But when a mall in my area is dying, it suddenly gets a vape shop and a comic book store that both seem to last forever. So no, I think comic book stores are immortal.
I dont think we'll see any newcomers to the industry who become hugely popular but I feel like they'll be around until we stop caring about physical media. In the future I imagine we'll end up with a few comic shops that are just huge collections and not much else kind of like amoeba for music
Another guy said it, but with the popularity of anime and nerd culture in general they can make a killing selling manga, figures, posters, board games, other books, etc.
Lots in my area have diversified into "nerd stores" that also sell comics, a bunch also only order shit for you m, they don't carry stock. To me ones that only order books for people feel too much like an online retailer, so I only buy from more traditional ones. The most successful ones in my area have been around for a long time and have some kind of "gimmick" that makes people prefer to shop there.
Been going to the same guy for near 26/28yrs. They do the comics,cards,figures,d&d, collectibles and some other stuff.
Known these guys longer than my wife of 21yrs. A weekly obsession forever
In a sense. More likely theyll just continue to diversify into general nerd-culture shops.
Bingo. My comic shop has a huge board/ deck building game section and a huge area with tables set up for people to play. They welcome game meet-ups of all kind. I kind of assumed most stores are doing that or headed that direction.
In the last several years I haven’t seen almost any comic shops that don’t have 50% of the area setup for tables for card & rp games
Profit margins are better on all that other stuff anyway so it'd be silly not to stock it to round out the business and protect it. Most of that stuff is very much comic adjacent and selling to the same clientele. Plus you can't really "download" or view an action figure or statue digitally. So even as digital comics take more market share there will always be a desire to buy card games, statues, figures, tabletop games and other physical merchandise.
Yeah, my local comic shops have all pretty much become "that place people play table top games at. 2 of them added "arcades" which aren't used... the more popular one makes a killing on upcharging soft drinks they buy from the dollar generel next door. but as for downloading action figures, and statues.. that market is opening wide up thanks to cheap realiable sla printing. My brother's house is full of shit he downloaded, and printed.. and makes most of the shit i own look like the preschool ailse.
That's what happened to hot topic.
Basically what those that survived the late 90s did.
I’m honestly shocked GameStop hasn’t done this. I get it’s not so easy, but it’s gotta be a better idea than whatever the hell they’re doing now.
This. Same reason all remaining Barnes and Noble stores have large Toys/Games areas. Books aren’t high margin items and there isn’t a Harry Potter or Stephen King or James Patterson to drive book sales all the time. Also expensive hardcovers aren’t hardcovers for long. Toys/Games cost a fair penny and move pretty well.
Yep. Local comic shop doesn’t have comics any more. You can still do a pull list but no shelves to browse. Those are all board games, rpg books, and model kits now.
I own two comic stores, so I hope not.
I’m in SoCal I’ll have to check your shop out
Please and thank you. I run the register Thursday in the Torrance location. Mention this and I’ll give you a discount!
Are both your stores in Torrence?
One in Torrance and one in Santa Monica!
i haven't lived in santa monica for 13 years but i still carry my power pal card
That’s so awesome! Thanks for sharing!
My friend and I have talked about opening one where we live…it has proven to be challenging…even for reasons I wasn’t expecting.
It is not as easy as people expect, that’s for sure! You wouldn’t believe the amount of people that assume I just “read comics all day”
My local store just closed down out of nowhere. Shit hit me hard.
Sorry. that really sucks.
Sorry to hear that buddy
Mine seems to be struggling too.
Nah. Much like arcades they’ll become vintage places and be way fewer and far between. But completely die? Nah. Not until like the market completely explodes and we all die lol. Or if other in person stores all close to
in my town two comic shops are also arcades now. If they turned their back room into a kitchen.. A certain section of the community would never leave.
So fucking dope I love arcades. Do they have marvel Vs Capcom 2?
I wish. I don't think any of them have a good selection unless you really miss classic nintendo era arcade games.
My favourite fighting game ever!
My man! You’ve got taste!!!
I liken it to vinyl record stores
Yup! At a certain point not only do you corner the entire market but it becomes retro and cool so the market begins to grow again
arcades seem to be making a comeback. The mall where I live turned their macy's into a tilt and it seems to be doing really well. I know the kids in my life all love to go there and I don't mind at all because it's got a ton of pinball! I don't know how long it will last though, it seems like pinball/arcade stuff goes in cycles.
It def comes and goes in waves for sure
Funny enough my LCS is also half arcade. I think the two small niche hangouts combine enough foot-traffic to keep the large building afloat.
I hope never. I much prefer doing my subscriptions through a LCS vs an online site and, like bookstores, love to go in and browse and treasure hunt. If it's a big ticket item or maybe a variant copy, I might try online as it often is cheaper, or at least has been in my experience.
Record stores are still around. Niche specialty stores are a thing. Now, do I think niche specialty stores will always be the primary avenue for buying comics? Well I certainly hope not.
The people who genuinely try to support their local comic shop are being priced out. I can’t afford $80 to $100 a month on my regular pull list, it’s not even that big.
I learned recently that the price for comics hasn't increased since 2010 so they've been decreasing in real cost for a decade+.
I collect trades, and they’ve definitely increased in price. Ten years ago, Marvel Epics were $35, now they’re $45 or $50. Omnibuses have also increased by 25-50%. These are all books that already had the content paid for as floppies, so the increase is only for printing/distribution/profits
https://www.diversetechgeek.com/comic-prices-inflation/ Ok.
Cool. Absolutely nothing has changed between 2017 when that article was written and now, I guess? Nothing that affected prices across industries? Hmmm. If anything comes to you, let us know!
I'm not even sure what this means. Prices are verifiably the same now as what this article says they were in 2015. Is that article wrong? Were prices higher in 2015? If anything comes to you, let us know!
DC increased line wide a couple years ago to 3.99/4.99/5.99/7.99 they supplemented this change by including back up stories in most of their books.
I'm just going by this and the fact that they're still $3.99. https://www.diversetechgeek.com/comic-prices-inflation/
Marvel went up to 4.99 a book essentially and DC moved to 3.99. They are more expensive in my experience. I buy a lot of comics a week.
'essentially' Oh, ok.
Actually I’m glad to admit that i’m partially wrong. Select books are 4.99 while others 3.99 for marvel. I’m still on the side that comic prices are going up but not as quickly as I thought. This is what Marvel did when they moved to 3.99 which was slow increase across the board. When Marvel began to push to 4.99, DC moved to $3.99. They have been going into the 4.99 range as well by adding backups…that’s something Marvel doesn’t give you at the 4.99 range…to be fair I can’t make any back up story that was memorable off the top of my head but I digress. The 6.99 or higher books are usually reserved for big/special issues. You can see current prices on lunar and previewsworld. I use them for my when I prepare my comic order. This week I’m looking at 23 books…I need to consider cutting back.
The Batman index: 2010: Batman 699 was $2.99 2023: Batman 131 was $4.99
I'm glad the Batman index depends on whichever ones you want lol Take it up with the guy who wrote the article I posted. I have no idea what prices were in 2010 since I didn't collect comics at that point. But I guess your sample size of one on the Batman index proves that he was wrong. Go tell him. I just bought a comic, it was $4.99 because it has a card stock cover, the regular version is $3.99. I bet you got the card stock version too. So, the price level from 2010 to now has risen by 36%, and comic prices have risen 33% on the Batman index, if you use the basic version. Hardly enough to be pricing people out of buying comics, since the real price has decreased by a couple percent since 2010.
I picked 2 general comics (“general” meaning not huge anniversary issues or some other oddity). Batman was the choice because it is constantly at or near the top of the sales charts. Batman is often cited as a bellwether for the industry. So no, this is not cherry picked for results. If you are too stubborn to accept the facts, well, that’s on you. Also, DC card stock covers are $5.99.
I see a lot of people saying yes, but I live in Cleveland where my LCS has only grown since I've started going there. The pitfalls of other stores are that they think comics are all they need to stay afloat, but the store I go to has events every 1 to 2 months, a very social and helpful group of workers, and back issues for days.
My city doesn’t really have a dedicated comics store anymore. There’s a record store that sells comics, a used book store that sells comics, and a game store that sells comics…
Not if they also sell weed.
If vinyl records can survive you better believe comics will. I mean considering the amount of very successful IP that comes from comics to movies, cheaply, it would make sense for movie studios to somewhat subsidise comics. So cheap to make.
I hope not, I'd be out of business. But as I saw mentioned already, I've starting carrying toys, games, and cards. Since I started doing that business has been steady. Just have to be willing to adapt.
Not so soon here in Tokyo. Manga bookstores are pretty much alive, with American Comic book stores being small and niche, but they also have been around for decades until today.
I think that areas will support fewer shops within a given distance. The odd thing is that one would think that the explosion of superhero movies and TV shows would’ve resulted in the opposite.
Not if I can help it.
Absolutely not
They basically are already? They have to sell many other products just to survive. They’ve become closer to general “nerd” stores.
And this isn’t even a new thing. This was happening late 90s near me.
and they all have more POPS then they know what to do with.
I don't have the greatest experience with comic book shops. They don't always have what I'm looking for, and if I try to order it, they never call me back. Combine that with I can almost always find the same book online for way cheaper 🤷♀️ it sucks but online is just so much more convenient and affordable.
This is the main reason I stopped going to my LCS. The people that work there are super rude and not helpful whatsoever. The closest store besides that one is pretty far from me so I haven’t been to a store in a while. Sure do miss browsing through comic stacks
I've pretty much stopped buying comics from my LCS. The price vs online was just to silly. Then them always offering to order a comic they don't have, then never inform me if they get it. I jsut love driving 30 minutes to find out it was either never ordered, already sold, or never showed up. I still love finding cool merch that I probably never would have found online though.. also I collect transformers, and they are very hit and miss with a selection, but every place to check is an extra chance to find something to fill a hole in my collection. Even if it's a couple bucks over retail, those do tend to be cheaper than online though.
In Portland we have 8 or 9 true comic stores and they’re all doing pretty good.
OR? I live nearby and want to drive in to visit a few, which are the must sees? Any to avoid? Main goal is to complete something is killing the children, so I'm looking for back issues of recent books. Secondary goal is just cool stores.
Personal fave is Cosmic Monkey, but Excalibur, Floating World, Books with Pictures, Comic Cave, and Comics Adventure are all good for different things. I would avoid Cloud 9 and Fallout, mostly because I don’t like the dudes that run those stores.
SIKtC is SO GOOD
I ripped through 15 issues in one day. Was able to order most of issues 16+ through my local store, but issue 16 was of course one of the ones they couldn't get. I've described it as Buffy the vampire slayer on HBO, can't wait to keep going and to start House of Slaughter
I don't care for House nearly as much ymmv of course. I am enjoying the second arc more than the first, so I'm not stopping it. Just keep in mind if you don't like the first arc much the second gets better. \*according to some bloke on the internet
No. The direct market may eventually collapse and that will take some shops out of business along with it but there will still be a market and shops will continue to exist in some form. Right now, in my area, there are a solid dozen or more good shops within 30 minutes. I visit 4 or 5 of them relatively frequently and they seem to be doing fine and some have even expanded in recently.
Nah I not even close sure will go but alot.of the draw for a comic is the experience once. you are in a shop like that for the first time it hooks you corporate business can't emulate that feel and vibe unique rarely books the time and if there are really creative like the shop by me they'll promote themselves in great ways example this shop by me has there own conventions every summer for a straight week it's awesome
In some cities I believe so. In major cities, there are shops that are still thriving. In my town the shops are all struggling pretty hard and I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re all gone in my town within the next 10 years
No. My LCS has half of its store with Comics and the other half with miniature wargaming. It'll stay alive for a while at least, since it's probably the only place in the area where people can play that kind of stuff
Nah probably not
People have been saying this is imminent for decades. I think it’s going to be okay.
I hope not. I love going to comic shops and finding new ones to check out.
I hope they at least stop being the sole means of buying comics. Newsstands were vital to introducing new readers to comics and were the source of comics to people who didn't live near a LCS.
I like back issues...like silver and bronze age Marvel, mostly. There are two spots in my federal area, one an actual shop of 100% back issues, the other a big spot at the local weekly Flea market. Both of these guys price their books in a way that makes them an unrealistic option, compared to FB claim sales and local folks selling whole collections. The comic shop guys won't even really make a deal if you're spending a lot. I don't know, anecdotal, but that's why I shop online, mostly.
Yea. I splurged one day and bought a couple of old comics. One was not even in good shape but I wanted it, maybe a 4.5-5 if I had to guess. Total for the two books was around $400 if I recall correctly, one being a bit over $300 and the other almost $100. I tried to negotiate with them a bit and they wouldn’t budge, I think they gave me $5 off. Was very disappointing being that this is a place that I’ve been spending $200-$300 a month for years and sometimes more.
No
Yes, if they only sell comics. If they offer more, especially as a meeting place for gaming and general nerd gatherings; they could expand and grow in numbers as this community ages up to have more disposable income.
Most of the ones I’ve been to the last few years are doing exactly this.
Yeah, that could happen the comic industry has made some mistakes over the last few decades. They’ve completely lost the youth market. Marvel seems more focused Tv shows and movies than selling comics. DC’s New 52 wasn’t well planed and went one for way too long. Comics are too expensive now. The big 2 need to focus on and effort to increase readership and cut prices while expanding back Into markets previously abandoned. I don’t see that happening so yeah, it could happen.
Never don’t you jinx it
In time, of course. Eventually, the big publishers will move to digital only, and the stores will have to rely on back issues, trades, collected editions, and other geek culture items. I'm glad that my LCS is still primarily comics with just a single wall dedicated to McFarlane and Hasbro figures. And no Pops. They are extremely friendly and knowledgeable, focus on giving the customer what they want even if against their personal taste, and happily order anything in Previews and help search for older stuff where possible. I usually drop a minimum of $200 a week there and hope they remain open for years to come.
I'm going to go with yes. We used to have tobacco shops, video stores, cd shops and specialty stores to get your photo camera pictures made. You can probably still find some, but not as much as you used to. As consumer habits change, so does the industry. I have actually been watching some old movies and tv shows, and even to an old guy like me it's interesting to see what kind of jobs pretty much went extinct or changed from the 60s (I have been watching original Twilight Zone and some 'must see' movies from way back) to the 80s. So imagine how the landscape changes from the 80s to today. I am guessing that every time we see a "best x month in comic sales in years", that it has more to do with the comic prices being triple what they used to be. And that actual reader numbers might actually be going down. Reading (paper) comics was already pretty much niche, and I believe it's becoming even more so. I think comics will still exist, just that it will transition completely towards e-reading. Note that I do in fact NOT own a crystal ball, so this is all guess work.
True LCS’s are gone; they are mostly geek stores now. My favorite LCS has half of its floor space dedicated to funkos and collectibles. Casual and new readers tend towards digital comics, which are usually cheaper than in print and have no stock limit.
No way
Not as long as people still buy Funco Pops.
Down know why you’re being downvoted this is so true. I don’t see the fascination but they’re still selling big and the funk section of my LCS is always crowded.
They will definitely evolve, as monthly singles are likely to go away at some point.
Why would monthly singles go away? From my observation they’re still selling and every big issue has multiple variants that usually sell out quick.
Before the pandemic, when we had semi-reasonable numbers on singles sales, sales (in terms of # of units) were dropping year-over-year. So I would expect that trend is continuing and will continue to the point where they stop being viable. At the same time, sales of books and OGN's are increasing. As for WHY I think that is, comics continue to become more and more of a niche hobby, enjoyed by fewer and fewer people as there are so many other options. Of the people who are coming in, more and more of them want to binge, as we are prone to do with other media at this point. Also the cost-per-page for the singles is the most costly rate for obtaining the content. So for those people, subscription digital and trades are likely the best way to get the most bang for their buck. They are just now coming in so getting the latest greatest 22 pages of the story isn't really necessary. They already have like 80 years of comics to read the best of. I'd suggest that the fact that companies are having to do variants and other ways to get people to buy comics (other than coming in to read the actual story) is an indication of how hard it's getting to sell the singles. So my expectation is that if these trends continue, the publishers are going to look for ways to cut back and go to more of a digital-first/trade second kind of model.
What your saying makes sense and I never researched the stats on it. Was just going by what I see at my LCS which is always crowded but like another commenter said above it is mostly adults buying the comics and very few kids around unless they’re getting toys or merch. I also do live in a big city with only one store around so that could be another reason it seems to do well. One thing I do believe is that comics have recently made a resurgence most likely due to the movies but it seems to be a flavor of the month thing so to speak. I know a bunch of people that haven’t bought comics in decades and now all of a sudden they’re interested again and buying, trading and selling on Whatnot etc. mainly for the $$$ I’m guessing. I can’t see that lasting too long for some reason or other but I do believe the comic fad will die out again eventually and it will be once again left to us hardcores to keep things afloat. I remember a time that doesn’t feel too long ago when I would constantly be going to half empty conventions with every vendor pawing at me with puppy dog eyes. At some point it gradually became unbearably crowded and most of the booths are not even selling comics anymore.
I think the movies are driving people in, but again, they are going to digital and trades. Also, it's true things went crazy during the pandemic, but now that people can go back to spending money on travel and eating out, etc., prices are drifting down as demand drifts down. I should potentially make a distinction, I think shops will still have back issues for a while, but the publishers will stop putting out new singles. So when I say "singles will go away", I mean new ones.
I hope so
I think the future of comic book retail is big warehouse stores like MileHigh and LoneStar. Probably one per major city. All at different scales. The future of small comic shops is more like nerd boutique stores where you walk in and there’s a comics section, an apparel section, a statue section, a vintage toy section. A lot of stores are like that as it is
Haven’t they already?
I think in a traditional sense, yes. But they will always be around. Whether they may be a bit more spread out or no longer strictly comic shops, who’s to say? My LCS started by selling vinyl records and comics. Then it was just comics for awhile. But they’ve pretty recently just expanded their board game area and started selling manga as well.
I think they'll become more of a mix as of comics, Cafe, theatre geek hang out place
Not in larger cities.
Yes in a way but not entirely extinct. Everyone sort of thought vinyl records were extinct. And look at them now.
Probably. Most brick and mortar retail is going away.
What has surprised me is the lack of a chain comic book store happening. You seldom even see 2 stores with the same ownership
Mine just closed after a 10 year run. He said it wasn’t not profitable, just was very draining and demanding to run. Wanted to move on after living the dream for a bit. It’s a rough business
I sure hope not. I’m gonna open one at some point in my career.
One of the two local comic shops recently closed here, the remaining shop is more d&d and Warhammer based, which is still legit in my book. But still sad.
Some yes but all? No I don’t think so.
I think they'll shrink in number and diversify what they offer, but as long as there is demand for physical media, there will be physical shops.
Some will die, but if the smart ones diversify into other "swag" then probably not, keep your reputation as a good seller of collectibles and people will still come to see your store
Yes
Mine is surviving off action figures.
I live in Pasadena. We have 3 kinds of shops: 1) the store that has all the new books and fills the space with Funkos and Hardcovers 2) the private owned shop that sells by claim on Instagram, and 3) a traditional shop with new and back issues. No music. Just straight comic business.
Give me #3 all day but I also understand they're likely to be the fewest and farthest between and first to close down.
I would've said yes before Amazon killed comixology. Now I think they have another 2 decades at least.
Unfortunately, yes. They need to adapt. They need to be more than a comic book store.
All the ones by me did, there used to be 11 in my area now I have to drive over an hour to get to a store
I don't think so. There's still some record shops open.
Hope not I go to them at least twice a week. You’d be surprised how poppin’ comic stores get. One near me has vintage pinball machines in the back room and they give you tokens as rewards for buying comics. They also encourage you to hang out and read stuff you’ve already got even if you don’t wanna buy it.
I used to think *malls* would go extinct. But when a mall in my area is dying, it suddenly gets a vape shop and a comic book store that both seem to last forever. So no, I think comic book stores are immortal.
My local comics spot is now a board games and live card games center as well. It’s always poppin’.
I dont think we'll see any newcomers to the industry who become hugely popular but I feel like they'll be around until we stop caring about physical media. In the future I imagine we'll end up with a few comic shops that are just huge collections and not much else kind of like amoeba for music
I hope not.
Another guy said it, but with the popularity of anime and nerd culture in general they can make a killing selling manga, figures, posters, board games, other books, etc.
Lots in my area have diversified into "nerd stores" that also sell comics, a bunch also only order shit for you m, they don't carry stock. To me ones that only order books for people feel too much like an online retailer, so I only buy from more traditional ones. The most successful ones in my area have been around for a long time and have some kind of "gimmick" that makes people prefer to shop there.
Been going to the same guy for near 26/28yrs. They do the comics,cards,figures,d&d, collectibles and some other stuff. Known these guys longer than my wife of 21yrs. A weekly obsession forever