Retailing & Marketing

As we reported a few days ago, Ingram/Lightning Source has announced an incredibly cheap level of color print-on-demand, and Todd Allen has seen the samples:

___________________________________________________________________________ A few months ago, I brainstormed about how Halloween mini-comics being offered by Diamond could be used in a variety of ways to promote...

It's nearly a year later, and retailer Brian Hibbs is first out of the gate with an analysis of the New 52, a year later and he says it was good. An attached chart shows all the books up significantly for the year, and more importantly, as Bob Wayne promised at Comic-Con last year, the New 52 actually enlarged the pie with some new readers:

Here are some books on clearance at BarnesAndNoble.com! Some of these books are cheaper than a Marvel comic!

Last night Ragú debuted the above ad during NBC's telecast of the Olympics. We had to rewind it a few times before we actually believed what we saw.

On our periodic forays to Bergen Street Comics we've been watching the new Barclays Center go up a few blocks away, so it's good to know that comics loving Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez knows where to get his books:

Realizing that getting new stores out there is crucial to growing the comics business. Diamond has announced a couple of new programs to help...

Continuing their efforts to get comics shops to install expensive but highly efficient POS systems, Diamond has teamed with several publishers to offer stores a $6250 subsidy for purchasing a POS system, it was announced today.

Realizing that getting new stores out there is crucial to growing the comics business. Diamond has announced a couple of new programs to help...

This morning's Marvel teaser suggests that the new Marvel NOW! relaunch will be tied in with the Point One program which saw various series get a ".1 issue" that was new-reader-friendly. The program did quite well, we're told. Details will be revealed at the Cup O' Joe panel, Friday, July 13th, 3:15 PM PST. This move solidifies the "jump-onable" nature of the Marvel NOW! program.

After a long testing period, and a lot of controversy along the way, Diamond and iVerse are finally going live with Diamond Digital on July 23rd. The program will allow Diamond accounts to set up their own digital storefront, sell download codes and otherwise engage in the digital sales that everyone thought would kill comics but which has, instead, led to growing sales. The program has been in beta for some time now, with some lively feedback from participating retailers. Publishers represented in the program include IDW, Image, Archie, APE, Arcana, Bluewater, BOOM!, Broadsword, Hermes, Sea Lion, Top Shelf, Viper Comics, and Within Temptation—Marvel and DC have yet to opt in.

Long rumored to be moving (perhaps due to the giant FOR RENT sign on the building), Forbidden PLanet, one of NYC's longest-running comics shops, is moving a few doors down the street to larger digs, according to manager Jeff Ayers. The new location, 832 Broadway (between 13th and 12th Streets), provides 3400 sq. feet of space for comics, toys and games, and it's the largest of the three spaces the store has held on that same block over the years. "This expansion has been necessary for some time now, and will allow us to provide our customers with even more product selection and depth, while streamlining the store’s layout to one convenient floor," said Ayers in a statement.