[Groop] This is the end.

[Eric Chun]

Here's the last 25 years in comics condensed into 1 paragraph:

Around the early 80s, Marvel got the idea to use an exclusive
distributor, so no other distributor could handle -any- Marvel
comic book, where Marvel just happened to be the #1 comic
book producer at the time, leading to most of the other dis-
tributers being forced out of business and comic book stores
not getting their deliveries on time.  Comic book stores were
going out of business, and Diamond was the only distributor
to survive, even Marvel's exclusive distributor went under.
Return policies were revised -- unsold material could no longer
be returned, general stores stopped selling comics because
of this, and comic book stores which ordered too much non-
selling or slow selling items also closed shop.  Any comic store
surviving today relies on its core customers to stay in business,
who order 3 months in advance through the (Diamond) Pre-
views catalog, and cannot depend solely on casual customers
who just happen to walk through the door.  As a reward for
ordering in advance, and thereby limiting the risk for the store
of ordering too many items that don't sell and ensuring that
they get enough cash by sales to order the next months items
and stay in business, most stores offer something like 10%
discount for advance orders.  Most stores probably don't have
enough cash reserves to stay in biz for more than a few months,
so ordering the correct items is crucial, make or break, which is
why only lifelong or long time comic fans are comic shop owners.
Joe Blow off of the street probably couldn't do it.  Even if you
don't get Previews magazine, all of the major upcoming Sergio/
Mark items are announced in advance on this mailing list, as was
Sergio's Solo issue, but sometimes you have to read until the
end of the paragraph to get the scoop ...  :-)

----Original Message Follows----
From: Chris Schechner <cschechner at sbcglobal.net>
To: "groop-groo.com" <groop at groo.com>
Subject: Re: [Groop] This is the end.
Date: Sat, 24 Jun 2006 12:39:22 -0500

I want to gripe a little here. You remember I asked where to buy Solo online
and then I decided I could get it at a local comix shop. So yesterday, I
called the shop, which is about a 25 minute drive from my house. I asked if
they were getting Solo #11 in. The guy said  yes, that they would have it on
Wednesday. I asked if I could reserve a couple and he said, ³Oh we can¹t do
that because we have already made our order. If we have any to put out on
the shelves, it¹s on a first-come first-serve basis.² Now what kind of a
stupid way is that to run a store?!? Order only what you know is going to
sell and have no extra inventory? I mean, you might as well become a
mail-order house. What if Target or WalMart worked that way? You could only
get product if you pre-ordered it. Screw Œem. I¹m ordering it from Mile High
Comics.

Back to your regularly scheduled insanity.

Chris (Glorko)



on 6/24/06 4:08 AM, Mo orst at m00rst at hotmail.com wrote:

 > Anil,
 >
 > Solo is basically one of the coolest things DC has done in quite a while.
 > They pick a well-regarded comic artist and let him go crazy for an entire
 > 48-page issue doing whatever he wants. All of them have been filled with
 > several short stories with some issues having guest writers contributing.
 > The artists generally explore different aspects of their own style, so 
the
 > issues have a varied, anthology-type feel to them. The Darwyn Cooke issue
 > (#5) is widely regarded as one of the coolest comics to come out in the 
last
 > five years, and it won an Eisner to prove it. The Richard Corben (2), 
Teddy
 > Kristiansen (8) and Scott Hampton (9) issues are also very good, imo.
 >
 > I probably wont be buying two Sergio issues, but I certainly wish this
 > series was selling more copies. It truly is unique and worthwhile. I'm 
way
 > excited to get my hands on #11.
 >
 > -Al



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