Diamond/Gladstone Distribution

[kds]

>Diamond/Gemstone is very focused on getting into major new outlets, and 
>not merely in the fullness of time but right off the bat. And they have 
>savvy and resources Gladstone was unable to apply to these areas.
>
>After the prestige monthly, the trade paperback will be Gemstone's 
>format of choice. The album and the pocket book (the digest) are also 
>contenders. Less certain is the newsstand (magazine) format, but the 
>door hasn't been closed on that either.
>
>Gary


Gary

Please let me add my two-cents worth in on this discussion.

All major and minor comic book companies in the United States
are getting into Trade Paperbacks (sometimes called "TBP"s).  

Here's the reason - in the early to mid 1990's there were numerous
comic book companies publishing and they pushed their way into
the large 'chain' bookstores in the USA (Borders, Walton, Books-A-Million,
Barnes and Noble. Even Wal-Mart carried individual issue comics). The
effort failed. The product (regular comic books) got torn up too easily by
customers and employees who were not used to dealing with the fragile
media.  Few major bookstores now carry individual comics.

About 1998 Marvel Comics came along with "essential" black and white
composite books of Marvel comics from the 1960's. The book stores loved it
- they 
could make money on it  (at $15.95 each) and they were stories that were
nearly impossible to get without thousands of dollars (or euros or pounds,
etc).

While the TBP was initially a premium comic retailer only item, Diamond
quickly say the TBP "book size" sturdy format was the format of choice of
the big stores with buying power. In the last three years the strategy of
TPB is big on the agenda.
(It is a major part of the business plan of CrossGen comics if anyone is
interested.)

The other reason - is that it is cheap to produce as the writers and
artists get only a fraction of their original payment for "reprint"
material.  The good news is that it is sturdier, and the price per book
comes down from their original consumer cost. 

Let's hope Diamond can convince the publishers and retailers. It may be
reprint material, but the package and price will be good.  For example I
saw at TBP of Ultimate Spiderman at Wal-Mat today for $10 for the first
seven issues.  This is less than cover price and less than 1/10th the going
price of these seven individual comics.

Robert
kds at gnc.net

Now,  

 

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