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stephenshamus12

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Posts posted by stephenshamus12

    Ace Comic Con, Glendale AZ. Jan 11-13, 2019

    in Comic Events

    Posted

    @inthehottub - I'm not sure there are too many events that repeat guests, but in my 20 years of running events (I've run nearly 200 Comic Cons, so I think I'm the #1 showrunner all-time in terms of total # of events) typically when you repeat guests, even great ones, they are typically down 40-60% revenue over the prior year. The only ones that it doesn't affect are events like Walking Dead or Vampire Diaries, the hardcore fan bases that turn out year after year. Even though the A+ names can cause excitement, 80% of fans are local and are not too keen on spending $100-200 on a repeat guest, and they want "new guests." I'm not sure if you are a showrunner yourself, but I'd like to hear your experience when you've repeated guests at your events. Thanks!

    ACE Comic Con, Chicago, Oct 12-14 at Chicago's Navy Pier

    in Comic Events

    Posted

    @RCheli- No matter where you go, people will complain that "it's too this, it's too that." I heard the same complaints at McCormick and Rosemont every year. If you bring the guests that people want, you have to travel. I live in NYC. If I want to go 5 blocks, it takes 20 minutes. Javitz and SD Convention Center, Anaheim, all the big shows are in inconvenient locations. People find a way when there's something they want to see. Our early sales reflect the fact that we are getting Artists that never or rarely appear. It is Brolin's 1st appearance ever, same for Zazie. Only Hiddleston's 3rd. We are announcing some more great names soon, stay tuned. -Stephen

    Ace Comic Con Seattle — June 22-24, 2018

    in Comic Events

    Posted

    Hey all,

    I think the topic has gone a bit sideways. As a promoter, our job is to disseminate the information we are given when we are booking the Illustrators or Writers or anyone for that matter. If we let you know ahead of time the fees, regardless of whether or not it's tiered (ie first one free, second one is $X OR $XX for CGC), then you can make an educated decision. Whether or not the creator makes any money will be solely dependent on the value that the fans place on that item or autograph. Some Illustrators charge $50 a sketch and some charge $500. If they overprice or price gouge, they will not sell very many. The key for us is to know during the booking process so we are not "surprised" on site, which can happen (and has, likely to all promoters). So, as I stated in my first post, it was a valid issue, one that we are aware of, and one we will pay much closer attention to for our next event. The rest of the debate on here is really just opinion one way or another on whether or not folks should be charging a premium, tiered pricing, or charging at all. I'll leave that one to you all. My personal opinion is that a Creator should charge a fair fee based on time, experience, fair market value, and any other factors they deem important. If they are off base, the market will correct them, as they won't sell very much. -Stephen 

    Ace Comic Con Seattle — June 22-24, 2018

    in Comic Events

    Posted

    Hello,

    I hear what you are saying. We have little control over this, and we do ask creators what, if anything, they are charging, and we try to post before the event. In the case of someone like Todd McFarlane, he makes it clear there are no CGC witnesses allowed at his public signings and they are all free. There are other creators, who shall remain nameless, who specifically told us they would be charging X or Y and then on gameday decided to charge more or ask for a CGC tax. At that moment in time, there is little we can do as the creator is on-site and it's best not to cause a scene. If we bring these creators back, we will certainly mention it. We have done our best to clean up vendors and artists of Swipe artists, Home amateur artists stealing IP, State Farm Insurance and Teeth Whiteners and Aluminum Siding. We actually turn down more booths than we accept, and we could take a lot more money in, but we prefer to curate the experience and only promote those folks who are actually part of this world. That is not to say that we think others should do it our way, simply that we have chosen a different path. That's why when I see comparisons to other events, I immediately try to explain that our events in no way resemble any other events out there. Are apples and oranges fruits?? Yes. Are they similar in any other way? Certainly not. We will be more careful about addressing the issue you are bringing up, as it's an important one we are aware of. With the Artists/Celebs, it is very clear what the pricing is. Thanks for coming, and hope to see you at the next ACE event. -Stephen

    Ace Comic Con Seattle — June 22-24, 2018

    in Comic Events

    Posted

    Hey BassGMan - I respectfully disagree. This was not sold or marketed as a comic book show (ala the other Seattle event). This was a superhero event with premium VIP tickets geared towards a whole new audience (as has been the case with all our events). It's a completely new event, and quite frankly, had you come expecting the number of booths and tables that you've become accustomed to at ECCC, you would have been disappointed and then calling us out on these boards that we had only a few comic dealers and 60 Illustrators. We were extremely pleased with our results, and how can you not be?? We doubled the largest halls that exist in the comics industry with our Q&A Panels. We had a total sellout of 3-Day and Saturday passes and a near sellout of Sunday. With the exception of 2 Artists/Celebs, we completely sold out of all Ops and Autographs to the extent that Tom Holland and Tom Hiddleston even added a 3rd day. ACE Events are catering to a new audience, and we have found our place. We also got global pickup on the Spider-Man panels in all major news outlets. Perhaps you will try ACE in the future, perhaps not, but the measure of a successful event is number of tickets sold, did the fans get their ops/autos, and did people have fun?? The answer is yes. The dealers did extraordinarily well, as I had multiple vendors tell me this was THEIR BEST SHOW EVER! Same for celebs and artists. We had over 14,000 images so far posted on Instagram just from this event. Anyway, add us to IG or Facebook and you can't miss us!! -Stephen

    P.S. - Feel free to reach out to our exhibitors or check the hashtag #acecomiccon on IG and you will see what I mean

    Ace Comic Con Seattle — June 22-24, 2018

    in Comic Events

    Posted

    So we sold out of 3-Day passes and Saturday Passes. The Saturday Civil War panel had 12,000 people and was covered on Deadline three times due to Tom Holland announcing the title to Spider-Man 2. Sunday was a near sell out as well. The Flash panel had 8000 people and the Scarlet Witch/Vision panel had 7000 people. Even the close of Sunday Loki panel had 5000 people. I'm sorry you missed out, but the place was packed, ask any of our dealers or Artists. Thanks!! 

    Ace Comic Con Seattle — June 22-24, 2018

    in Comic Events

    Posted

    14 hours ago, Jugger Grimrod said:

    I inquired about exhibiting at the show a week ago, have yet to hear a response. its a new show for Seattle, so hopefully the prices are reasonable and affordable. With ECCC, Rose City, Vancouver Fan Expo, and Wizard World Portland for the Pacific Northwest as well as a few smaller shows throughout the year, it is unsure how Ace will fare. I am all for another show here in Seattle, but the comic guest list needs to be improved, with less focus on local comic talent, bring in bigger name comic creators that rarely make it out here, or haven't been out here in a while. With Ace being an unproven show here, I would love to see it succeed and be a yearly show for Seattle, and while the three main celebrity guests will bring people in, there will be a number of fans who can't afford the signature fees and will want to meet comic book artists and writers, especially talent that doesn't get out here and there are several names.

    Hey - I asked Brad and Alex and they didn’t have anything in their inboxes. So maybe it was sent to an old email. Can you let me know who you emailed so I can get the inbox checked??

    email Alex Rae or Brad Foster - alex@aceuniverse.com and brad@aceuniverse.com

    anyone else need a booth or artist table, you can email the above