Whose Job is it, Anyway?

I recently came across a post on publisher SLG's web site saying that the Warlord of Io graphic novel would not be distributed by the major comic book distributor, Diamond. Within that article is a link to a post on The Comics Reporter that seems to blame the Direct Market (comic book retail) for this, and the potential decline in the industry itself.

In 2009 Diamond Distribution changed it's thresholds for products, making $2500 wholesale their cut off. In other words, if an item's initial Previews orders are less than $2500 Diamond will cancel the item and not distribute it.

If you have ever seen the Previews catalog you know that there are LITERALLY thousands of items solicited for sale each month. You should also understand that Diamond, while having a monopoly on the Direct Market distribution channel and often pulling some crazy stunts, is a BUSINESS. A for-profit company with overhead like warehouses and employees. Like any business they want to turn a profit and minimize expenses. It is not a government agency spending other people's money no matter the cost, nor is it a dude in his basement trying to spread the word about comics by giving them out to anyone he can. I know sometimes people have a hard time understanding the concept of BUSINESS when it's close to home, they make it emotional, but it isn't. If Diamond determined that it is not cost-effective to distribute an item that hasn't brought in $2500 +, it only makes sense that they would cancel the item. Sure, if you are a fan of that item or the creator of that item you might be bummed out, but it's nothing personal.

You know what else is a business? Each Direct Market comic book store. Sure, some of us barely make a profit, but that IS our goal. We want items in our store THAT WILL SELL We don't just buy things because it's good for the comic book industry or to have cool stuff sitting on racks collecting dust. We buy with the intent of selling that item and making a profit. Part of having that comic book store is bringing in customers. Each retailer does what he or she can to market their store, to bring customers in. We might buy ads, we might hand out free comics or coupons, we might do presentations at schools or libraries, we make it a part of our business to get people into our places of business. Then once those people are in the store we try to sell them something we have in stock. Again, we buy items that we believe WE CAN SELL. If customers come in and pre-order an item, or ask about something, or if we've heard good buzz or seen a great preview of an upcoming work, we order it, believing that once it arrives we have the ability to sell it.

You will notice that I do not assign the task of promoting a comic or graphic novel to either Diamond or the retail store owner. Diamond is in business to move products from one point to another. A retail store owner's job is to get people into the store and sell them something once they've arrived. Both of these businesses promote the Direct Market in the process of doing their jobs because they are an important piece in the process of getting comics into the hands of readers.

So whose job is it to promote works like Warlord of Io? It is the job of whomever stands to profit by its sale or experience a loss if it isn't sold. Diamond has plenty of items to sell, and if they need to see $2500 wholesale before they profit, then they obviously do not experience a loss from not distributing items that fall below that. The retailer, if they have the item IN the store, profits from selling the item and looses if it isn't sold. However, a smart retailer does his or her best to avoid buying something that doesn't have the ability to sell due to lack of interest.

Get where I'm going with this? It is the job of the publisher and the creator to promote their comics and graphic novels. Make me want to order them for my store. Get consumers asking for that item or issue. Just like Craig and I, and all other comic book retailers have to work to promote our stores or see them die, creators and publishers need to get out there and promote their works or expect that the item won't survive in the mass market. If the publishers and creators aren't out there creating interest in their work, or if they are but it isn't working, then they should not expect Diamond or the Direct Market to experience financial losses just so their item can see the fluorescent lights of comic book stores. On occasion a creator or creator's representative will contact us at the store, giving us information on a work they have in the Previews catalog. We look at it, and if it looks like something good, that we believe we can sell, we will order it. But that happens very rarely. Sometimes a work has a fan buzz, for example Atomic Robo and Umbrella Academy had a good deal of fan buzz - people came in asking for those works before they even were in Previews. Retailers knew there would be demand, so we ordered those items. But again, this happens on rare occasion.

In a sea of new items, it only makes sense to do what you can as a creator and publisher to get your items to rise to the top, and if you do not, then EXPECT to fail. To blame Diamond and/or the Direct Market because no one wanted to buy your comic book is not only irresponsible, it is RIDICULOUS. I know many in today's society prefer to blame everyone else for their own failures; it's easier than doing the work. But it doesn't fix or accomplish anything. As a business owner and as a human being I resent being blamed for the failure of others to do their jobs. Sure, occasionally a good thing meets with disaster - there have been some comics I thought were great (The Miscellaneous Adventures of Stykman for one) and whose creators were out working the front line to promote their works, but still were unable to meet Diamond's distribution cutoff. But by and large the failure of a work to meet the cutoff lies directly in the lap of the publisher and creator, no one else.

If there was an opportunity to profit from the distribution of smaller works to the retail market, a company would be doing so. However those that have tried in the past have met with failure. If a store really believes in a creator the owner will bring in that person for a signing and/or do an in-store promotion to build up interest in that person or work. It isn't like there isn't opportunity for these smaller publishers or creators. The opportunity IS out there. Yes, this current economy makes it harder for everyone, but there is still potential if you are willing to put in some effort. And sadly, in this life there is no guarantee that you will succeed. Today, for good creators who have works that have fans, but not quite enough to make the cut, there are GREAT opportunities on-line to get works to the fans. Maybe not through a retail outlet, but that isn't the only way to succeed today.

I enjoy comics, as do most comic book retailers. Even Steve Geppi, the owner of Diamond, likes comics. We WANT the direct market to grow and thrive. Because we love it, AND because we can profit from it. We are not choosing not to distribute or stock an item because we want to limit the market, we make these tough choices because even though we love comics, we fail if we don't also pay attention to the bottom line. We do our part to grow and promote comics each and every day. The Direct Market doesn't fail because some works are unable to gather enough interest to get them through Diamond to retailers - it fails when the essential pieces of the Direct Market close down due to bad business decisions that lead to financial ruin. Every time a comic book store closes comic book consumers are lost, but every time one opens new ones are found.