Comic Shop: The Retail Mavericks Who Gave Us a New Geek Culture - Hardcover

Gearino, Dan

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0804011907 ISBN 13: 9780804011907

Publisher: Swallow Press, 2017

Synopsis

The modern comic book shop was born in the early 1970s. Its rise was due in large part to Phil Seuling, the entrepreneur whose direct market model allowed shops to get comics straight from the publishers. Stores could then better customize their offerings and independent publishers could access national distribution. Shops opened up a space for quirky ideas to gain an audience and helped transform small-press series, from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to Bone, into media giants.
Comic Shop is the first book to trace the history of these cultural icons. Dan Gearino brings us from their origins to the present-day, when the rise of digital platforms and a changing retail landscape have the industry at a crossroads. When the book was first published in 2017, Gearino had spent a year with stores around the country, following how they navigated the business. For this updated and expanded paperback edition, he covers the wild retail landscape of 2017 and 2018, a time that was brutal for stores and rich for comics as an art form.
Along the way he interviews pioneers of comics retailing and other important players, including many women; top creators; and those who continue to push the business in new directions. A revised guide to dozens of the most interesting shops around the United States and Canada is a bonus for fans.

About this title

About the Author

Dan Gearino is a lifelong comics reader with tastes that swing from the classic Legion of Super-Heroes to the work of Michel Rabagliati. Formerly a business reporter for the Columbus Dispatch, he has won national recognition for his work and now covers clean energy for InsideClimate News. He lives in Columbus, Ohio, near his home store, The Laughing Ogre, with his wife and two daughters.

From the Back Cover

Award-winning business journalist Dan Gearino leads a tour through the world of comic shops, telling the story of the direct market from its 1970s origins to today. Includes profiles of forty notable shops in the U.S. and Canada, and a close look at The Laughing Ogre in Columbus.

Edition details

• Publisher: Swallow Press
• Publication date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0804011907
• ISBN 13: 9780804011907
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 264