Two days following the announcement that Diamond would no longer be supplying comic shops with new product, Dark Horse released its retailer support plan as COVID-19 continues to upset the direct market. The message from CEO Mike Richardson, outlined below, was posted directly on Dark Horse’s retailer website.
Dark Horse keeps its message short and to the point, bulleting specific actions including 90-day full returnability (available indefinitely), continued monitoring and adapting to the situation and a reduction of monthly output for comics and graphic novels.
That last point, up until Diamond’s distribution stoppage, was standard for publishers’ retailer support. But, as fans and shop owners wonder if new comics will be coming out at all, that reduction of output does seem to imply there will be some new comics. The Beat reached out to Dark Horse for clarification on whether or not it will be releasing new books in the near future – to which, Dark Horse responded that specific plans as to how that reduced output will be released are still being finalized. The Beat will report more on that situation as the information becomes available.
‘Till then, check out Dark Horse’s plan for retailer support below.
Dark Horse: ‘Committed to Helping Support Your Business’
Dark Horse Comics CEO Mike Richardson addresses the company’s response to conditions triggered by the Coronavirus.
To all of our retail partners,We hope you and your loved ones are safe and healthy. As I write this, the Coronavirus continues to threaten the health of our families and communities. With distributors shutting down or reducing capacity, retailers and printers closing their doors, and increasingly stringent government rules, it has become challenging to conduct business as usual. We know this has been an incredibly difficult time for everyone.
It is important that you know Dark Horse is committed to helping support your business through this trying time. It seems that market conditions change on a daily basis, which makes formulating a response difficult. While the details are still being worked out, here are our initial action items:
  • We will immediately reduce our monthly output of both comics and graphic novels for the coming months.
  • Dark Horse will indefinitely offer 90-day fully returnable terms (affidavit) on all periodicals on Final Order Cut-off corresponding to the weekly on-sale dates.
  • Dark Horse will continue to explore a variety of options intended to help our retail partners. Updates will be coming.
I’ve been in this business for a long time and witnessed our industry weather many storms. This new threat takes us all into uncharted territory, but we will do our best to help you through it.
All the best,
Mike Richardson