If comic cons are always packed, then why are comic shops closing down?

[bug33fouf]

Is it the owners in the shops?

The people that don't buy moderns?

The shops that don't have back stock?

E-bay?

What !

Tell me o might one.

[binarysunrise]

Maybe the owners are at the cons?

[Cimm]

Elitist shop lackeys... self-righteous gamers... lack of back stock... arrogant owners,,,

 

Very few shops that don't suffer one or all of these ills... And those are the shops that I return to.

[thehumantorch]

Is it the owners in the shops?

The people that don't buy moderns?

The shops that don't have back stock?

E-bay?

What !

Tell me o might one.

 

Most of the people at cons wanna meat a wrestler and buy a smurf scarf and matching undies. The small majority are buying back issues or new issues.

[comicwiz]

meat a wrestler

 

[Hado]

meat a wrestler

 

[sterlingcomics]

Because the freaks like to come out in costume.

[Willie Lumpkin]

meat a wrestler

 

 

The only wrestler I wanted to "meat" last month at Mid-Ohio Con was Maryse! Wowza!

[bug33fouf]

Because the freaks like to come out in costume.

[Flaming_Telepath]

Is it the owners in the shops?

The people that don't buy moderns?

The shops that don't have back stock?

E-bay?

What !

Tell me o might one.

 

Most of the people at cons wanna meat a wrestler and buy a smurf scarf and matching undies. The small majority are buying back issues or new issues.

 

This.

 

There are also the cosplay freakoids, the slabbing freakoids, the sketch and sig freakoids...

 

95% of the crowd have no interest in actually buying the comics that started it all.

[DeliBebek]

Aren't there a fair number of convention dealers who don't have shops, either because they can't — or don't want to — deal with running a business with hours, overhead, etc.?

[Maccai3]

the internet

[Dr. Balls]

My LCS sells back issues at 100% guide and refuses to buy or sell on the internet. From time to time, I pick up a $10 back issue here and there, but I can't pay $100 for a SA Silver Surfer issue that gets $30 on Ebay.

 

I'm sure that has hurt business. And now with digital - my pull has one or two sympathy books in there that get me to stop in twice a month, but eventually - the LCS will probably be gone.

[dgarthwaite-migration]

Comic shops have high overhead and low profit margin. The publishers force you to order more comics than you can sell so you can get your demanding customers those variants they want. Every unsold comic eats into the profits. Comic shops have employees and customers that steal. They have rent and utility bills. Most are stuck working their store and can't really get out and locate the comics their customers want the most. Collections walk in the door, but most are already cherry picked of anything decent. Most store owners are burnt out on what they do because they are barely getting by. They have no health insurance. Gamers like to hang out and not buy anything. Parents drop their kids off and use them as babysitters. When the parents come to pick up their kids, they whine for mom or dad to buy them something and the parent looks at the price and says "that's too expensive" and they walk out.

 

Convention dealers don't have the monthly rent. They buy a few tables and have time to hand pick books that they know will sell. They get a month to prepare or more. Many have a steady income elsewhere. They meet a wider range of customers, not just the ones in their local area.

 

DG

[paperheart]

Is it the owners in the shops?

The people that don't buy moderns?

The shops that don't have back stock?

E-bay?

What !

Tell me o might one.

 

Most of the people at cons wanna meat a wrestler and buy a smurf scarf and matching undies. The small majority are buying back issues or new issues.

 

This.

 

There are also the cosplay freakoids, the slabbing freakoids, the sketch and sig freakoids...

 

95% of the crowd have no interest in actually buying the comics that started it all.

 

or buying anything for that matter. SD has become a track meet where the masses run from one freebie handout to another.

[Bunky Brian]

Is it the owners in the shops?

The people that don't buy moderns?

The shops that don't have back stock?

E-bay?

What !

Tell me o might one.

 

Most of the people at cons wanna meat a wrestler and buy a smurf scarf and matching undies. The small majority are buying back issues or new issues.

 

This.

 

There are also the cosplay freakoids, the slabbing freakoids, the sketch and sig freakoids...

 

95% of the crowd have no interest in actually buying the comics that started it all.

[lookwhoitis]

 

95% of the crowd have no interest in actually buying the comics that started it all.

 

Especially at $4 a pop!

[Ditch Fahrenheit]

My LCS sells back issues at 100% guide and refuses to buy or sell on the internet. From time to time, I pick up a $10 back issue here and there, but I can't pay $100 for a SA Silver Surfer issue that gets $30 on Ebay.

 

I'm sure that has hurt business. And now with digital - my pull has one or two sympathy books in there that get me to stop in twice a month, but eventually - the LCS will probably be gone.

 

I can't throw a rock without hitting a comic book store.

 

They're everywhere.

[sufunk]

My LCS sells back issues at 100% guide and refuses to buy or sell on the internet. From time to time, I pick up a $10 back issue here and there, but I can't pay $100 for a SA Silver Surfer issue that gets $30 on Ebay.

 

I'm sure that has hurt business. And now with digital - my pull has one or two sympathy books in there that get me to stop in twice a month, but eventually - the LCS will probably be gone.

 

I can't throw a rock without hitting a comic book store.

 

They're everywhere.

 

I have 4 pretty close to me. 2 of them, it's VERY obvious that they do pretty good. The other two, I'm pretty sure the owners are independent billionaires because I can't figure for the life of me how they can possibly be staying in business

[Dr. Balls]

My LCS sells back issues at 100% guide and refuses to buy or sell on the internet. From time to time, I pick up a $10 back issue here and there, but I can't pay $100 for a SA Silver Surfer issue that gets $30 on Ebay.

 

I'm sure that has hurt business. And now with digital - my pull has one or two sympathy books in there that get me to stop in twice a month, but eventually - the LCS will probably be gone.

 

I can't throw a rock without hitting a comic book store.

 

They're everywhere.

 

Consider yourself lucky. There's four in the entire state of Montana (other than Hastings). If I don't like what mine has, it's a three hour drive to the next one.