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San Diego Comic Con Report #2

Howdy!

I want to begin today by apologizing for not having already written more newsletters from this year's San Diego Comic-Con. Having the union fail to deliver our bins containing our 100,000 comics to our booth until after closing on Tuesday evening put us way behind in building our display for this year's show. Blessedly, we have a wonderful crew with plenty of experience, so we did manage to get everything in place for the 5 PM Wednesday opening. Since then, we have been doing our best to catch up.

As regards my observations about this year's show, the biggest change is the diminishment of foot traffic in the main exhibit hall. This change has not resulted from a decrease in the number of attendees, but rather the fact that events are now being spread out over more venues. The external events that began several years ago as just peripheral amusements, have suddenly morphed into an integral part of the overall convention experience for many fans. As a result, hours that were previously spent browsing the exhibits in the main hall are now being spent across the street at places like the Amazon TV exhibit, the amusement park by PetCo Field, or over at the official convention events being held in the brand new Marriott Convention Center.

 

Small example of people not in

the hall.

So you know, those venues that I just mentioned are but a few of the dozens (hundreds?) of convention-related activities that are now sited within just a couple of blocks of the convention center. As a result, there is no longer any reason to not still attend SDCC even if you fail to win a ticket in the online lottery. Much like going to Downtown Disney can be quite a fun experience without paying the exorbitant cost of going into the park itself, just hanging out in the neighborhood near the SDCC can now keep you quite entertained for all five days of the show.

 

Another view of external events

near convention.

In and of itself this externalization of the convention experience creates some problems, however, as those of us who are paying top dollar to rent our booths inside the main hall (ours cost $16,200) are now finding it much harder to generate enough revenue to cover our costs. For comics dealers, the effect of this diminishment in foot traffic is magnified by the fact that the online lottery system does not distinguish between fans. This causes enormous difficulties for those of us selling products (as opposed to promoting an upcoming media property) as the percentage of fans winning tickets who are actual buyers/collectors/readers diminishes each year. This negative effect has hit critical levels early in the convention, as initial reports are that comics sales in the Gold and Silver Pavilion are down (for at least some of the comics dealers) by a staggering 50%-70% as compared to last year. Our sales are not down quite that much, but we are definitely running at a level that will put us below break even. Clearly, this is non-sustainable.

On a related note, the rapaciousness of the local hotel and restaurant establishments has become increasingly vulgar. As they have come to realize that they have a captive audience during SDCC these people have taken to jacking up prices to ridiculous rates. An omelette that I purchased at a cafe in the Gaslamp for a pricy $11.95 on Monday was jacked up to $18.95 on their "special" Comic-Con menu on Tuesday. A delivery of two last minute packages from Denver (which used to be free to pick up at our hotel) was assessed a staggering $105 "handling fee" with no warning. I heard that even the Motel 8 (which used to be our lowest cost dive hotel option) had a $360 walk up rate yesterday. I used to love coming to San Diego, but this profound collective ugliness is definitely making me rethink whether Comic-Con should stay here past the end of their current contract.

Returning to the topic of our own results, our convention sales have been saved this year by the huge effort that our Denver comics sorting team put into replenishing our convention bins during the week prior to the convention. Those two very large private collections that I purchased earlier this month greatly expanded the breadth of our 1980-2016 selections, so we have been doing far better than otherwise might have been the case. Pam, and her inventory team in Denver, have also been working quite diligently this week to keep adding thousands of great older comics into our online inventory into our absence. As a result, our annual dip in sales that typically accompanies our departure to San Diego has been greatly mitigated. If you have not browsed through our Premium New-In-Stock link this week, I highly recommend that you do so immediately. We have thousands of comics available today that have been out of stock for a year, or more.

I will close by quickly mentioning that our annual 50% off SANDIEGO! codeword sale ends next Monday, at noon. Another sale will be announced on Monday, but it will need to be at a lower discount.

Happy collecting!

Chuck Rozanski,

President - Mile High Comics, Inc.

July 23, 2016

P.S. Here are two photos that I think clearly illustrate the diminishment of traffic at the SDCC. The first is from 2013, while the second is from noon, today. When traffic on Saturday is this weak at a venue that claims to be the world's largest comics convention, some is definitely wrong.

 

2013 booth Saturday at noon

 

This year's booth Saturday at noon

http://www.milehighcomics.com

 

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San Diego Comic Con Report #2

Howdy!

I want to begin today by apologizing for not having already written more newsletters from this year's San Diego Comic-Con. Having the union fail to deliver our bins containing our 100,000 comics to our booth until after closing on Tuesday evening put us way behind in building our display for this year's show. Blessedly, we have a wonderful crew with plenty of experience, so we did manage to get everything in place for the 5 PM Wednesday opening. Since then, we have been doing our best to catch up.

As regards my observations about this year's show, the biggest change is the diminishment of foot traffic in the main exhibit hall. This change has not resulted from a decrease in the number of attendees, but rather the fact that events are now being spread out over more venues. The external events that began several years ago as just peripheral amusements, have suddenly morphed into an integral part of the overall convention experience for many fans. As a result, hours that were previously spent browsing the exhibits in the main hall are now being spent across the street at places like the Amazon TV exhibit, the amusement park by PetCo Field, or over at the official convention events being held in the brand new Marriott Convention Center.

 

Small example of people not in

the hall.

So you know, those venues that I just mentioned are but a few of the dozens (hundreds?) of convention-related activities that are now sited within just a couple of blocks of the convention center. As a result, there is no longer any reason to not still attend SDCC even if you fail to win a ticket in the online lottery. Much like going to Downtown Disney can be quite a fun experience without paying the exorbitant cost of going into the park itself, just hanging out in the neighborhood near the SDCC can now keep you quite entertained for all five days of the show.

 

Another view of external events

near convention.

In and of itself this externalization of the convention experience creates some problems, however, as those of us who are paying top dollar to rent our booths inside the main hall (ours cost $16,200) are now finding it much harder to generate enough revenue to cover our costs. For comics dealers, the effect of this diminishment in foot traffic is magnified by the fact that the online lottery system does not distinguish between fans. This causes enormous difficulties for those of us selling products (as opposed to promoting an upcoming media property) as the percentage of fans winning tickets who are actual buyers/collectors/readers diminishes each year. This negative effect has hit critical levels early in the convention, as initial reports are that comics sales in the Gold and Silver Pavilion are down (for at least some of the comics dealers) by a staggering 50%-70% as compared to last year. Our sales are not down quite that much, but we are definitely running at a level that will put us below break even. Clearly, this is non-sustainable.

On a related note, the rapaciousness of the local hotel and restaurant establishments has become increasingly vulgar. As they have come to realize that they have a captive audience during SDCC these people have taken to jacking up prices to ridiculous rates. An omelette that I purchased at a cafe in the Gaslamp for a pricy $11.95 on Monday was jacked up to $18.95 on their "special" Comic-Con menu on Tuesday. A delivery of two last minute packages from Denver (which used to be free to pick up at our hotel) was assessed a staggering $105 "handling fee" with no warning. I heard that even the Motel 8 (which used to be our lowest cost dive hotel option) had a $360 walk up rate yesterday. I used to love coming to San Diego, but this profound collective ugliness is definitely making me rethink whether Comic-Con should stay here past the end of their current contract.

Returning to the topic of our own results, our convention sales have been saved this year by the huge effort that our Denver comics sorting team put into replenishing our convention bins during the week prior to the convention. Those two very large private collections that I purchased earlier this month greatly expanded the breadth of our 1980-2016 selections, so we have been doing far better than otherwise might have been the case. Pam, and her inventory team in Denver, have also been working quite diligently this week to keep adding thousands of great older comics into our online inventory into our absence. As a result, our annual dip in sales that typically accompanies our departure to San Diego has been greatly mitigated. If you have not browsed through our Premium New-In-Stock link this week, I highly recommend that you do so immediately. We have thousands of comics available today that have been out of stock for a year, or more.

I will close by quickly mentioning that our annual 50% off SANDIEGO! codeword sale ends next Monday, at noon. Another sale will be announced on Monday, but it will need to be at a lower discount.

Happy collecting!

Chuck Rozanski,

President - Mile High Comics, Inc.

July 23, 2016

P.S. Here are two photos that I think clearly illustrate the diminishment of traffic at the SDCC. The first is from 2013, while the second is from noon, today. When traffic on Saturday is this weak at a venue that claims to be the world's largest comics convention, some is definitely wrong.

 

2013 booth Saturday at noon

 

This year's booth Saturday at noon

http://www.milehighcomics.com

 

same rant every year. by Sunday, he'll have broken even and paid his deposit for next year

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I would have to probably agree that the comic dealers are hurting due to the fact that many comic buyers such as myself as well as a number of local guys I know not going has made an impact. I'm not going to make or break any dealer there but I usually spend a fairly large amount on vintage comics. Multiply this by the the large amount of other SO CAL collectors who either can't get in or choose not to any more, has got to have a decent impact.

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I think I'll just take a squat here....

 

Can never find the bathrooms in these halls anyway.

 

 

Exactly what I was thinking. Looks like he's squatting on a giant "chucks pad".

I imagine IBS, Colorado Brownies and peyote are a lethal combination!!

 

 

69620315.jpg

 

 

163531.jpg.43d3c04a565453966045024560cef4e4.jpg

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I would have to probably agree that the comic dealers are hurting due to the fact that many comic buyers such as myself as well as a number of local guys I know not going has made an impact. I'm not going to make or break any dealer there but I usually spend a fairly large amount on vintage comics. Multiply this by the the large amount of other SO CAL collectors who either can't get in or choose not to any more, has got to have a decent impact.

 

If I did not have the luxury of being able to take the train each day to NYCC and also getting a comped or discounted pass to the show, I would not go.

 

I also realize it is having a trickle down effect. There are more people that are of my mindset that used to buy several books at the show. Now, I feel that I can do better online than I can at the show.

 

It still annoys me that one vendor was charging more at the show than they were at their own website. I shrugged and hit the BIN with free shipping an hour later on my phone for the item and had it delivered to my doorstep.

 

Maybe the days of comic shows like SDCC and NYCC are dying especially as certain companies like Marvel / Disney / Lucasfilm choose to reveal their big stuff at their own cons.

 

Even Hasbro has stopped attending NYCC in the last few years and is developing its own cons (Hasbrocon was recently trademarked) for each of their in house properties like Transformers and GI Joe.

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chuckemptybooth071916.jpg

 

Just sitting and wondering if anyone will notice the giant extension cord coming out his hm

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I would have to probably agree that the comic dealers are hurting due to the fact that many comic buyers such as myself as well as a number of local guys I know not going has made an impact. I'm not going to make or break any dealer there but I usually spend a fairly large amount on vintage comics. Multiply this by the the large amount of other SO CAL collectors who either can't get in or choose not to any more, has got to have a decent impact.

 

If I did not have the luxury of being able to take the train each day to NYCC and also getting a comped or discounted pass to the show, I would not go.

 

I also realize it is having a trickle down effect. There are more people that are of my mindset that used to buy several books at the show. Now, I feel that I can do better online than I can at the show.

 

It still annoys me that one vendor was charging more at the show than they were at their own website. I shrugged and hit the BIN with free shipping an hour later on my phone for the item and had it delivered to my doorstep.

 

Maybe the days of comic shows like SDCC and NYCC are dying especially as certain companies like Marvel / Disney / Lucasfilm choose to reveal their big stuff at their own cons.

 

Even Hasbro has stopped attending NYCC in the last few years and is developing its own cons (Hasbrocon was recently trademarked) for each of their in house properties like Transformers and GI Joe.

 

Very true as far as buying comics. What I miss is the "thrill of discovery" of flipping through a long box and finding a great book you have been looking for or didn't know existed. I just don't get that online. Neither do you get the fun of hanging out with like minded friends and meeting new ones.You just don't get that "online".

 

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OK, I'm too lazy to start another thread. So this is Chuck's final FINAL report. But I wanted to let you know that there is a champion out there. Someone who will fight for your comic collecting rights.

A champion who will not just sit idly by on the floor waiting to be serviced by minions.

A champion who believes that his books are 5X NICEer than yours(minus a 50% code word).

A champion who is fighting off those Hollywood spoonstards whose works are making your books soar to unimaginable heights.

 

 

 

 

 

Final 2016 San Diego Comic-Con Report

Howdy!

I had planned to not write any further about our experiences at this year's San Diego Comic-Con International, but I have received letters from several very insightful and heartfelt readers of my newsletters who expressed in no uncertain terms that they were of the opinion that I should never attend another SDCC. On many levels I agree with that premise, but I thought I would take a moment just to weigh in on a few random thoughts on the matter.

First, it was pointed out to me that my passion that has led to my supporting the San Diego convention for the past 44 years has clearly not resulted in any reciprocation by the convention staff. As one reader so cogently pointed out, a true love affair requires genuine commitment by both parties. In this instance, the staff of the convention has been completely indifferent to our needs. As a case in point, when Freeman (the decorator hired by the convention) failed to deliver our freight to us in time for us to set up our booth on Tuesday, not one representative of the convention offered to help, or was even was available for us to contact. They simply left us high and dry.

 

Chuck sitting in our empty booth all day Tuesday

Nor did anyone from the convention stop by to offer assistance (or even to just commiserate) on Wednesday as we desperately scrambled to set up our booth filled with 100,000 comics, in just 8 hours. Why? In all honesty, I believe that they are not helping us because they would just as soon that we left the show forever. To explain, I have been around for a long, long, time. The San Diego Comic-Con that I first attended 44 years ago was a fan-driven convention run by fans, for fans. As the convention grew, however, professional managers were brought on board to help. In no time at all, those professional managers took over the operating Board, and after easing out most of the fans, they became their own bosses.

This control of the Board allowed them to then chart a path that greatly expanded the convention by courting the Hollywood studios. On some levels this growth was very much needed in order for us to attract enough fans to cost-justify moving from the old Civic Center convention space into the then brand new San Diego Convention Center, but that was not the only motive. Simply put, greatly increasing the size of the show also provided justification for these managers to also increase their own compensation well into six figures. Comic-Con International may be set up as a "Not For Profit" charity, but as the San Diego Union Tribune discovered during their search of public records a few years back, nothing prevents the Board of a non-profit from paying themselves salaries "in line with industry standards for organizations of a similar size." The bigger they make the show, the more that they can justify paying themselves. It is just that simple.

All of the above having been said, is it any surprise that those of us who still advocate maximizing the comics aspect of the show are considered to be annoying anachronisms? That isn't to say that they will not always keep some degree of comics program on the agenda, but rather that comics and comics retailers are considered much more of a necessary evil than a core element of the convention. The real money flows from Hollywood, and Hollywood (by far) brings in the most attendees willing to pay whatever it takes to have bragging rights about having seen those all-important Hall H presentations. Hollywood studios also have the marketing budgets to not even blink at having to pay insane booth rental charges, and obscene drayage costs and set-up fees to the decorators to have their booths set up for them. The studio bigwigs could care less, as to them it is all OPM (other people's money).

By this point, I am certain that you are wondering why I keep attending San Diego. Well, the main reason is that I have built close personal relationships at the show with hundreds of comics fans, comics creators, and comics retailers. Many of these relationships go back decades, to when I was a young man in my twenties and thirties. Just contemplating the thought of never being able to see these friends again in that one magical environment fills me with profound sadness and regret. In a nutshell, that is why I have put up with the ridiculous cost increases and utter indifference heaped upon us by the convention staff for these many years. My love affair has never been with the actual convention, but rather with those fellow travelers who attend the show with me. They are my tribe, and my flame for them burns just as brightly today, as it did 44 years ago.

I am telling you all of this only so that you will more clearly understand why simply walking away from this show isn't as easy for me as it might seem. Attending San Diego is somewhat of a business decision, but it also reflects a personal commitment on my part to the comics fans of Southern California, and also to my peers in the comics world in general. If I can figure out some way to make attending next year's event less financially draining than it was this year, I will try to return. 'Nuff said...

As I did yesterday, I will close today's newsletter with a quick mention that our new 40% off TRUFAN codeword sale is now in effect for you on all ten million of our back issue comics and magazines. Pam and Josh put on another awesome grouping of older issues yesterday, many of which are in scarce higher grades. All of these older issues can be purchased at 40% off when TRUFAN is utilized. See today's Premium New-In-Stock link for our latest additions of Silver and Bronze.

Happy Collecting!

Chuck Rozanski,

President - Mile High Comics, Inc.

July 26, 2016

http://www.milehighcomics.com

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He does realize that he can attend the convention without setting up a dealer booth, right? That would be pretty cheap and let him see all those people/"fans" of his.

 

 

I think you are missing the point of the hints he's dropped.

 

After 44 years of coming he would like a booth strategically situated between Lucas film and Marvel paid for by those high falootin' Hollywood execs. The freight company should come to Colorado and move his store stock(over-priced drek) and set it up for him by early Tuesday. Then he would have some free time to establish good faith relations(strip clubbin') with some of the six figure salaried comic-con managers who have too many spare $1 bills. Afterwards, they could point him down to dry basement full of sacred comic treasures with a naïve family that he could royally ravage.

 

This would be best for the hobby!

 

Keep fighting Chuck. The common fan knows that you are our true hero.

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