How many collectors in the U.S.?

[catrick339]

Ted White, of science fiction writing/editing fame, actually did some research back in the day on the numbers of comics/sf/pulp COLLECTORS (as opposed to the occasional reader) and his numbers indicated 20,000 to 40,000 hard core collectors at any one time.

 

It really is a pretty small club, folks.

[Gatsby77]

That's more what I was thinking. I think there were 3,500 or so stores pre the baseball-card entry to comics stores entry in 1992, and reckon it's more like 1500 or less now. Metro DC has only 4 stores, down from 9 four years ago, despite the increase in print runs during the period.

 

And collectors? I'd guess maybe maybe around 20,000. Consider the average new comic print run is about 25-30,000 and likely only 2/3s go to collectors.

 

Then take a fraction of that for collectors of Gold/Silver Age that don't collect moderns. I'm talking U.S. only.

[Bruce1971]

Ted White, of science fiction writing/editing fame, actually did some research back in the day on the numbers of comics/sf/pulp COLLECTORS (as opposed to the occasional reader) and his numbers indicated 20,000 to 40,000 hard core collectors at any one time.

 

It really is a pretty small club, folks.

 

I think this is a good point to explore. There is a big difference between readers and collectors. I know many collectors, and from talking to my friend who owns a store, many of these so called "collectors" are really readers. They don't buy many, if any back issues unless they missed an issue off of the stands or the beginning of a new series or popular story line. Most of them will not pay a lot for back issues and will just as happily pick up second prints or a trade for the issues that they missed. This group is only called collectors because they buy there comics from a comic store. Trades are selling very well for comics stores and it seems for book stores as well. Trade are a double edged sword for comic collecting, more people are reading comics but the reader of trades tend to consider trades as a book whereas comics are viewed as collectables.

 

I think the 20,000-40,000 hard core collector base is very low unless you are only counting people who are willing to spend over $100-200 on a single comic book. I would assume that if you had a well advertised comic only show that you could draw well over 1,000 people per state.

 

Bruce

 

 

[gaz973]

I just invest in comics

 

Am I allowed on the list?

 

Since you're in the UK, no you're not allowed on the list of collectors in the US.

[conditionfreak]

Could the diffinition of a comic book collector be someone that purchases comic books for more than cover price?

 

There may have been many many "one time" collectors, during the "Death of Superman" and "Death of Robin" , and other such highly publicized events..

 

I wonder how many of those speculators got hooked and began collecting.

[the blob]

I think the 20,000-40,000 hard core collector base is very low unless you are only counting people who are willing to spend over $100-200 on a single comic book. I would assume that if you had a well advertised comic only show that you could draw well over 1,000 people per state.

------------

 

i'm not sure a comic convention necessarily means collectors wither, as many people go to these things because they're interested in the movies, sci fi, whatever. heck, i dragged my wife to one last year and she was just there to hunt down star wars action figures (how can someone who thinks my comic collecting is so geeky get all excited to find a C3PO in a dollar box?) and I might take her and my son to one of the big ones this year, although I'd feel sill spending $25 to get her in if she's going to be bored in an hour or two.

[the blob]

Could the diffinition of a comic book collector be someone that purchases comic books for more than cover price?

 

There may have been many many "one time" collectors, during the "Death of Superman" and "Death of Robin" , and other such highly publicized events..

 

I wonder how many of those speculators got hooked and began collecting.

------------------

 

I "collect" out of dollar, 3 for $2 and 50 cent boxes, where I find most of the moderns I'm interested in reading and, yes, collecting. Heck, 99% of the comics printed in the last 20 years sell for less than current cover prices.

[Bruce1971]

I think the 20,000-40,000 hard core collector base is very low unless you are only counting people who are willing to spend over $100-200 on a single comic book. I would assume that if you had a well advertised comic only show that you could draw well over 1,000 people per state.

------------

 

i'm not sure a comic convention necessarily means collectors wither, as many people go to these things because they're interested in the movies, sci fi, whatever. heck, i dragged my wife to one last year and she was just there to hunt down star wars action figures (how can someone who thinks my comic collecting is so geeky get all excited to find a C3PO in a dollar box?) and I might take her and my son to one of the big ones this year, although I'd feel sill spending $25 to get her in if she's going to be bored in an hour or two.

 

Thats why I said comic only show. The attendance to the multimedia events we have now has no relation to the number of comic book collectors attending these shows. Obviously even at a comic only show would be non-collectors but I would say at least 90%-95% would be.

 

 

As for the definition of a collector, thats a hard one. I would say they are someone who collects or is willing to collect back issues of comics, this can be .50 cent books or $1,000 books. I would generally say anyone just reading new issues as they come out without venturing into back issues is really more of a reader than a collector, even though they may call themselves collectors. I would add that some collectors do collect only new comics, but these are the people who would also be wiling to spend money on variant covers, Sig Series books etc. They won't balk at spending more then $10-25. Sure more can be added to the definition or taken away, but this should give an idea what I think a collector is. Sure this is something that many of us have different opinions on.

[the blob]

unless we're talking about really tiny local shows, are there any comic only shows anymore? just wondering if any of the big ones outside my neck of the woods are just comics. i don't think they can pay the rent on any of the good venues around me (NYC) with just comics

[PokerKid]

unless we're talking about really tiny local shows, are there any comic only shows anymore? just wondering if any of the big ones outside my neck of the woods are just comics. i don't think they can pay the rent on any of the good venues around me (NYC) with just comics

 

Terry's SoCal Comic Convention would not fit the "really tiny local" description. The annual show has an excellent assortment of books from golden age on up. He also brings in a couple of great artists each year. It takes up a fairly large room, pours over outside and has a smaller second room for dealers.

 

I would hope there are others out there, but I am grateful this show is just a short drive for me.

[hikeeba-migration]

I think the 20,000-40,000 hard core collector base is very low unless you are only counting people who are willing to spend over $100-200 on a single comic book. I would assume that if you had a well advertised comic only show that you could draw well over 1,000 people per state.

------------

 

i'm not sure a comic convention necessarily means collectors wither, as many people go to these things because they're interested in the movies, sci fi, whatever. heck, i dragged my wife to one last year and she was just there to hunt down star wars action figures (how can someone who thinks my comic collecting is so geeky get all excited to find a C3PO in a dollar box?) and I might take her and my son to one of the big ones this year, although I'd feel sill spending $25 to get her in if she's going to be bored in an hour or two.

 

Thats why I said comic only show. The attendance to the multimedia events we have now has no relation to the number of comic book collectors attending these shows. Obviously even at a comic only show would be non-collectors but I would say at least 90%-95% would be.

 

 

As for the definition of a collector, thats a hard one. I would say they are someone who collects or is willing to collect back issues of comics, this can be .50 cent books or $1,000 books. I would generally say anyone just reading new issues as they come out without venturing into back issues is really more of a reader than a collector, even though they may call themselves collectors. I would add that some collectors do collect only new comics, but these are the people who would also be wiling to spend money on variant covers, Sig Series books etc. They won't balk at spending more then $10-25. Sure more can be added to the definition or taken away, but this should give an idea what I think a collector is. Sure this is something that many of us have different opinions on.

 

I'd say anyone who buys a comic, reads it, and doesn't throw it away is a collector.

[Bat-Man]

[HouseofComics.Com]

What's the attendance at Terry's show?

[dupont2005]

I am definitely a collector and I don't really do shows. I might change that sooner or later but only because I live in an area with no comic shops. If I were lucky enough to have my pick of places I wouldn't likely hit a show at all.

 

I would like to meet my favporite creators but not so much that I would be willing to stand in line for 45 minutes just to say "Hi."

[Lt. Eckhardt]

A collector is anyone who hoards/saves comic books and has a dedicated place to store them. It can be for pure joy or investment. It's that simple.

[Green]

Heroescon is basically all comics.

[RockMyAmadeus]

In 1993, Diamond had about 10,000 accounts. This was made up of approximately 7,000-8,000 storefronts, and 2,000-3,000 personal/catalog/show accounts (keeping in mind that the internet did not quite exist as a functioning resource yet.)

 

There are probably less than 2,000 storefronts in the entire country at this point. Diamond has roughly 3,500 active accounts.

 

Collectors? People who buy a comic book and do not, for whatever reason, dispose of them? Probably, in 1993, about 150,000 (though there were reports as high as 500,000-1,000,000...this is doubtful.)

 

In 2010, probably about 30,000, as others have already reported.

 

30,000 = .01%, or 1/10,000th of the US population. That averages 10 people per population center.

[Point Five]

In 1993, Diamond had about 10,000 accounts. This was made up of approximately 7,000-8,000 storefronts, and 2,000-3,000 personal/catalog/show accounts (keeping in mind that the internet did not quite exist as a functioning resource yet.)

 

There are probably less than 2,000 storefronts in the entire country at this point. Diamond has roughly 3,500 active accounts.

 

Collectors? People who buy a comic book and do not, for whatever reason, dispose of them? Probably, in 1993, about 150,000 (though there were reports as high as 500,000-1,000,000...this is doubtful.)

 

In 2010, probably about 30,000, as others have already reported.

 

30,000 = .01%, or 1/10,000th of the US population. That averages 10 people per population center.

Can 2000 storefronts be supported by just 30,000 comic collectors (even on top of toy buyers, card buyers, etc)?

 

I am intrigued every time this question comes up and numbers in the tens of thousands are thrown around.

 

I know there's no precise way to measure, nor perhaps even to agree what a comic collector is (your definition seems as good as any), but... I would be absolutely stunned if the number of comic collectors were not still in the hundreds of thousands.

 

With the right marketing, I'd think you could get 30,000 people to show up for a major comic con in NYC alone, the vast majority of whom would be considered 'collectors' by any reasonable definition.

 

The ebay metric similarly suggests a much higher level of activity than 30,000. I've got umpteen feedbacks from major comic dealers who themselves have feedbacks in the thousands or even tens of thousands (and granted, not all feedbacks are unique). I have a hard time believing that all these sales are the same group of people buying over and over and over again.

 

Frankly, I've been surprised before at comic cons by the number of people who, judging from their conversations & want lists, don't appear to be buying comics on the internet at all, and would not even show up in such statistics. And if that's true in New York, I'd have to think it's true elsewhere.

 

I realize that each of these points can be whittled down to size a bit, and are not hard evidence, but IMO the circumstantial evidence suggests a much larger pool (albeit a slowly shrinking one) of collectors in the hundreds of thousands.

 

 

 

[catrick339]

Well now, Mike Goldman's one day Detroit shows, run once a month or so in the western suburbs, draws about an average of 200 people.

 

Comics primarily, with a few crossover toy people. This is a pretty major metropolitan area and even on a good day I don't think he pulls in over 300. Bad days 150 or less. This show has been running for 20+ years, EVERYBODY knows about it, and he still can't bring in 500 folks? From Windsor, greater metro Detroit, Toledo and Ann Arbor, all less than an hour from the show?

 

20,000 - 40,000 may be an overly optimistic estimate,

[FlComicFan]

I'd say maybe 200,000-300,000 readers buying new comics at least once a month and maybe 20,000-30,000 collectors who buy back issues in some capacity Comic shops maybe 1500-2000 left