distribution delimnas

[SRoweCanoe@aol.com]

There are two distinct methods of distribution for comic books in the USA - the direct market and the so-called newsstand distribution.  
   the direct market takes a comic book and sells it to comic book shops - basically the store gets about 50% of cover and the publisher and distributor  gets about 50%.  the system as developed gave huge discount for the book being non-returnable.  
   In the regular distribution market, the store can return all of the unsold comics - but gets a much much smaller percentage of the cover price.  most newsstand, grocery stores, book stores, drug stores use this method.

  in the USA, most super hero comics are sold in the direct market,and most of DC and Marvel sales are there.  
  However Betty and Veronica Double Digest and Heavy Metal and MAD -  which traditional are the three biggest selling comics in the USA  gets only about 10% or less of their sales in comic book stores -- Heavy Metal sells about 300,000 copies (the last i heard)- all but 10,000 on the newsstand.  B&V DD about 170,000 and Mad around 120,000 (how the mighty have fallen)  -- while the direct market sales are guaranteed, and thus have no returns or waste , obviously the potential for bigger profits for non-super hero comics is in the traditional marketplace.

   As previously mentioned Archie rents those spaces on supermarket checkout lines - where they are good for impulse buying.  
sr




In a message dated 6/27/2003 1:54:08 PM Eastern Standard Time, rodney-selfhelpbikeco at juno.com writes:

> A fine idea, except you're not considering that (A) Gemstone does not do their own distribution.  Those books (and nearly all, if not *all* comic books in the USA) are distributed by Diamond.  To my knowledge, there are no other distribution houses that handle comic books in the USA.   Therefore, there's no real reason to improve their service, as they have no competition in the distribution game.  And (B) the idea of finding Disney comics in every local supermarket and on every newsstand is wonderful, except, most people simply don't read comic books, let alone Disney comic books in this country.   In a country with over 290,000,000 citizens, Gladstone was selling 6,000-7,000 copies of WDCS and US during their last print run.  You can debate the reasons for that from now until doomsday, but the ultimate reality is that gaining new (especially young) readers in the USA is an uphill battle, and it's going to be tough to convince the local supermarket that they 
> ought to carry you
> r books.  That's simply the way it is.  
> _______________________________________________

Steven Rowe
SRoweCanoe at aol.com