Greetings, Maniacs, and welcome to another edition of The No-Fly Zone, where we discuss the varied and colorful fringes of comicdom—those titles and creations that live outside of shared superhero universes and go where capes fear to tread. Every week, we discuss a range of comics, from alternative material from publishers like Slave Labor Graphics to more mainstream fare like Hellblazer, or even offbeat superhero titles like Kick-Ass.
On Friday of last week, Simon Jones of Icarus Publishing broke the news via a blog post that Diamond Comics Distributors will raise sales minimums for comics to $2,500 wholesale—meaning the amount that the distributor pays to the publisher at a discount of usually around 40%. That translates into $6,250 in retail sales, or 2,090 copies of a comic with a cover price of $2.99. At the same time, Diamond has also eliminated the print version of its Previews Adult catalog, leaving retailers to use an online PDF to order adult comics. Needless to say, this carries weighty implications for independent comics—even those more successful ones at the bottom of Diamond’s top 300 bestselling titles.
First and foremost, consider that Diamond has always used its sales minimums for long term guidance in dealing with underselling comics. One month of not meeting the sales minimums does not equate to instantaneous expulsion from Previews, the distributor’s monthly catalog. But, a comic that fails to meet the numbers for advanced orders more than a few times may not be listed in the future. To clarify the process, Maniacs, understand that Diamond solicits comics in Previews three months in advance. Comic retailers use that catalog to order their products at a discount, thus profiting by the difference in cost between the cover prices you pay and the wholesale prices they do. Diamond takes the combined retailer orders and issues a purchase order to publishers, thus buying comics from them at a steeper discount—again, usually 40%—to send to retailers. When Diamond orders its comics from a publisher, an individual title must have accrued enough orders to cost the distributor no less than $2,500. If they haven’t met that minimum when the purchase order goes in, the order is cancelled. Until recently, the minimum was only $1,500. Check out The Comichron, the blog over at The Comics Chronicles for a chart of how many copies an individual comic would have to sell at different price points. Most comics by major publishers hover around the $2.99 mark, with a handful going for $3.99. Almost anything that makes the list of Diamond’s top 300 bestselling comics will probably make the cutoff. But, as the guys at The ComicChron point out, that hasn’t been the case every month. Sometimes, those titles at the bottom haven’t met the new minimum.
As much grief as everyone gives Diamond, we should remember that they’re running a business and not a charity. The economic downturn affects everything, and it would be shortsighted to just call Diamond names. If you want to come down on them for the debacle surrounding the Barack Obama variant of Amazing Spider-Man #583, go right ahead. But, Diamond contacted publishers personally and explained the new rules. Thus, a lot of independent comics will not be solicited in Previews when they don’t make the benchmark. Granted, many independent comics sell for $3.99 and higher, and with good reason. Producing and publishing comics isn’t cheap. But, even at that price point a comic would have to garner orders for 1,566 advance copies. That may not sound like a lot, but independent comics often sell in the low hundreds and fewer. Moreover, many small publishers depend on reorders of titles already months old. With a small output than Marvel or DC, they often keep older titles in print to meet the demand that builds over time. Everyone knows about Uncanny X-Men. If they want it, they’ll probably get it as soon as it comes out. But, something like Johnny the Homicidal Maniac gains a following over time. A comic available for reorder may not sell 1,566 copies in advance, but it may build over time to justify a long shelf life with Diamond. But, that may not be a viable option for smaller publishers now if they can’t get a book listed in the first place.
This raises a couple of issues. It may drive small publishers to increase their cover price to try to make the additional $1,000 per issue. That likely won’t remedy the problem, but it’s an understandable reaction. Small press comics fans understand that they may pay more than they would for a given Marvel or DC title, but asking someone to shell out much more than $3.99 for a magazine really tests consumers. Many publishers may also gravitate towards original graphic novels in lieu of miniseries. According to Diamond’s new requirements, a graphic novel priced at $19.99 would only require about 312 copies ordered in advance. That might be an easier sell for some publishers, but with the significant price difference, it could still create an uphill run for many others. That could force many publishers to find alternative distribution.
Publishers that don’t go through Diamond have a few options. There’s Haven, who specializes in independent comics. The distributor also keeps back-stock for reorders. However, Haven often wants new publishers to consign their comics, which may not prove viable for many small presses. And, the distributor doesn’t have the same reach as Diamond. Regardless, Haven may see an increase in business as small publishers look for new distribution avenues to the direct market. Those that don’t want to use Haven can consider just using the regular book market, which means getting an ISBN number for each product and acting as an independent vendor for as many retailers as possible—including comic shops. But, that takes a huge amount of legwork. Diamond works because it delivers comics to specialty shops. That’s why it’s called the direct market. Self-distributing takes a lot of time and energy, and it may not work for publishers trying busy trying to get their product created and printed. Then, there’s the digital-to-print route. Publishers release comics online and then offer print collections of the material later. This might work for hobbyist publishers, but larger independent ones may not see it as a viable alternative.
Diamond’s raising of its sales minimum will force some small publishers to consider other distribution options. However, those options many not provide the same reach or sales. With the economy in its current state, Diamond’s decision is understandable. However, its implications for small press comics are grave indeed. The blow to comics culture may not offset the financial needs that drove Diamond to make this decision in the first place.
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Let's do it. Fuck Diamond. Yes, they're a business. Yes, it's not their responsibility to stilt failing comics.
Here's the harsh reality of it though; If you're small press, Diamond shit's on you constantly anyway. As a guy that's dealt with them of six different independent books, they're not doing small press ANY favors. They regulate content, they regulate art style and if you have the honor of making into PREVIEWS, then you get to deal with their inept vender relations department. Tough economic times or not, this isn't the first time Diamond has treated their vendors like a pain in the ass.
Remember, they're a DISTRIBUTOR. They have NO product of their own. Without small press, they'd probably do a little sing and dance.
So let's go to Haven. If the majority of small press went to ONE indy distributor, then shops would deal with another company in addition to Diamond. Maybe in the process we'd be able to prove something to Diamond; not to mention that places like Haven are doing the same thing we are...offering an alternative to the same, broken-ass machine.