Karen: I came across this statement from Chuck Rozanski, the president/owner of Mile High Comics, stating that this years' San Diego Comic Con will be his last, as it is no longer a profitable enterprise for him (he claims he will have lost $10,000 at the con). He blames publishers for offering limited edition items, claiming it diverts money fans might otherwise have spent on his comics. I find this to be a rather dubious claim. I think there are plenty of other reasons for his situation (like the fact the Mile High's books always seem to be priced higher than everyone else's). But his statement brought up a number of thoughts and given that we've been discussing comic book economics here lately, what with Doug's selling of his collection, I'd like to throw out some discussion starters for the group to chew on:1) Has the era of the comic investor all but disappeared? By that, I mean the fan who buys books intending to hold on to them and sell them later, hopefully for a profit. We already have seen that most modern era books are not increasing in value. What about Silver and Bronze books? Has the prevalence of TPBs and hardbacks made the comics themselves less desirable?
2) The San Diego Comic Con has become the premiere pop culture event. But that's just it -it's no longer a comic book convention; I would wager most of the attendees are not comics fans but fans of the related genre films and TV shows. This makes one wonder: are the comics now really just IP (intellectual property) for other media to draw upon?
3) Rozanski complains that publishers offering "exclusives" stole business from him. But could it be that he needs to rethink his business model? Does it make sense at a convention like SDCC to have a 7-booth display? I also find it both ironic and insulting that Rozanski refers to the "greed and avarice of comics fans" -you mean the same people you have been selling to for years? While I feel for most of the comic dealers who try to compete at SDCC, I felt that Rozanski's column was questionable at best, self-serving at worst.
