Opening a comic store, anyone with any experience?

[Lofwyr]

I thought this would be an interesting topic since so many people here seem to have an interest with the financial side of comics along with the collecting aspect. Let's try to look at this from a pure business standpoint. From my experiences comic stores run with a "hobbyist" mindset that only cater to a subset of fanboys is doomed to failure as a business. What would it take to make a successful and prosperous comic store in this day and age? A few problems i've considered..

 

1) There's a shrinking market as a standalone comics specialty store so it's not viable as a business. A modern day comic store would need a great variety of other product such as Collectible card games, RPGs, anime, and games with mainstream appeal. An ideal comic store would have all of this while still maintaining some sense of loyalty to more ardent comic fanboys. Stocking indie titles and 'must read' sections would help.

 

2) Backissues. A lot of owners i've asked have told me that backissues are more hassle than they are worth. A few large stores cater to backissues like Mile high *cough* but usually they tend to assign questionable grading and price gouge. From a business sense this might be the only way to turn a profit. Selling backissues to a fickle collector/hobbyist market seems to be difficult. You have to invest lots of time categorizing, bargain hunting, and pricing to keep up with the times. In the long run it's not worth it.

 

3) Location! What kind of storefront? One near elementary/high schools or a trendy urban center? Many of the comic stores i've seen around Southern california tend to be located near trendier areas closer to universities. Since the comic reading age seems to be older now it'd be hard to sell product to people below the age of 18.

 

Some questions i'm unsure of but I hope other people can answer. What kind of profit margin do comic stores run off of? Also how complex is the ordering system set up. I hear mutterings from various owners that Diamond distribution is the devil itself but they tend to not elaborate beyond that. Also what type and how much of a loan would you try to borrow to open a comic store?

 

 

[murph0]

Well damnit, I was gonna post a link to an older thread with the same topic but I can't find it. My suggestion is to diversify. Get a lot of diff stuff but don't do it so much that it's not really a comic shop. My personal opinion is that instead of having boxes and boxes of back issues lined up in a store, is that you should have like 5 computers that have a searchable inventory on them. Keep the newer issues (past year) in stock at the store. Offer a subscription service. Offer a backissue program. Don't cell used CDs

Try to find a place with decent parking.

Get a catchy sign. A lot of comic shops just have a sign that says "Comic Shop" or whatever the specific name is. Some of the names have become too general in todays society. There's a really bad comic shop here, it doesn't have much going for it in terms of good books. But their sign is great has Batman on it with Gotham in the background over it's store name. Really attracts the customers..

 

Brian

[hammer-migration]

1) Buy Low, Sell HIGH!!

 

2) Don't get High on your own supply!!

 

3) Never underestimate the OTHER guy's greed!!

 

4) Sex ALWAYS sells. Put a half dressed porn star on your store sign. Better yet, call it "L'il Kim's Comics" or pick out some other wanton slut/skeezer and incorporate her into the store's title!!

[sckao]

 

There's a thread about the best comic stores in American running through CBG's letter pages.

 

Service seems to be the number #1 thing that keeps customers coming back. I live in the SF Bay Area and of all the stores in this area (and there are a lot), I like "Flying Colors Comics and other Cool Stuff" the best. The store doesn't cater to hard core comic collectors, but it has appeal for all ages.

 

The owner, Joe Fields, actually initiated Free Comic Day last year and this year has gotten lucky enough to have Jim Lee personally sign at his store on Free Comic Day.

 

If you're considering opening a store, you might want to personally visit some of the better stores around the country.

 

 

 

 

 

[Zonker]

Keep the majority of the superheroes stuff towards the back: the fan guys & gals will seek you out. If you're going for a university locale (which I agree is a good idea), have the front of the store outfitted with the more alternative/funky stuff. You want to get the foot traffic in that might never in a million years cross a threshold exclusively guarded by Spider-Man or Batman.

 

Cheers,

Z.

[ArAich]

HERE is the thread that I believe murph was referring too...

Quite informative.....