Posted in: Comics | Tagged: comic store in your future, Comics, entertainment, rodman

Comic Store In Your Future – Magic! The Gathered

Rod Lamberti of Rodman Comics, writes weekly for Bleeding Cool. Find previous columns here.

Why do I do these? What are the goals?

It's not to be rude. I do believe having others point out different points of view is a good thing. Where some people or companies, heck even governments get into trouble is they have or had a bunch of people all just agreeing. No one to point out that maybe there are unattended consequences, that could result for what everyone else says is a great idea.

The goals and reasons I do these is to educate. To help. To show the thought process of what comic store owners do a bit behind the scenes so to speak. To give a voice to like-minded comic store owners. Granted, with thousands of comic stores out there in the good old USA, not all will agree on everything. But, with a little luck, these columns will find storeowners that find value in these columns and people that enjoy reading these.

I also write these because I am selfish. I would have loved to have read a column about opening a store when I first opened. A what to expect. I second guessed myself when I first opened. My first year as a store owner I said yes and did think the customer was almost always right. Now I say no a lot and know that every customer is different. I know that there is no one way that is a blanket answer when dealing with customers. The more I said no, the fewer times I wasn't just going along with the customer to be a nice person the more profits went up. Weird right?

The challenge is not to become the stereotypical old disgruntled comic book store owner.

The potential for comics growth as I see things is there. I feel that comics easily could sell better. Europe and Japan sell a lot more printed reading material. I see no reason here in the U.S.A. we couldn't be giving them a run for their money sales wise.

Some steps in the right direction. Marvel advertising in theaters.

With all the movies based on Marvel and DC comic properties it is a crime that so few people actually go check out the material that the movie was based on.

There needs to be a connection. When I read a comic in public often times the following reactions happens. "They still make comics?" "Where did you get that?" " I remember reading comics as a kid." The question and shock about comics still being published happens a lot.

Que flashback music.

I didn't start my reading of comics by going to a comic store. I started by reading comics at the magazine rack while my mother grocery shopped. Yes, nowadays that might be child abandonment or something. Back then it was common. Kids were not as overly protected. Other kids were reading there also. Once in a great while my mom would spare the forty cents and buy me a comic. Dang, I am old. Comics for forty cents and a mother who when she told me no that was that.

As luck would have it the barbershop where I got my hair cut carried a big stack of comics that helped further my addiction to comics.

I would learn that drug stores had comics also. As a kid, there were more places that carried comics in small town Ankeny than there are now after I opened a comic store years later, even with Ankeny being a lot bigger. Odd how that happened.

One day my father came home and told me he drove by a comic store. Now one would think that a kid's reaction would be "That is so cool!" No, I was surprised and bewildered. A comic store? My dad said he would take me when there was time.

Some time passed and he drove me to it. As my first comic store, it overwhelmed me. Sensory overload.

It would be awhile before we were able to return. When we did my dad went to check out a store nearby and told me to stay and he would be right back. Another kid had been left there also. The kid set a comic book back. It dropped a bit and there was a slight tap sound as it hit the shelf. "You drop a comic again and I will break your fingers!" exclaimed the person working at the store. Holy smokes. My dad came back we left and sadly I didn't say anything about it to him. I knew my dad might be ticked to hear something like that was said and maybe go back in and "say" something, so I just let it go. Now, being older, I do regret my silence. Needless to say after that experience, I was alright with buying my comics from drugstores and grocery stores.

I would get older get my driver license and drive. A friend of mine at the time would tell me of a different comic store. I was mowing yards and had money to buy comics. And buy comics I would. Yes, I must be very old since as a teenager I mowed yards for money. As an adult, I could never find a kid willing to mow. I had multiple properties for a while and was in the renting business. Even the kids that were regulars here in the store weren't interested. Never even got to talking about how much for them to mow. It was always no, my parents just give me money. Even during the recovery from the recession. I was quite shocked. Kids mowing yards I never thought would be a thing of the past. Yes, now I sound like my grandfather, "back in my day we had to walk in snow a foot or more deep, miles to school! Backwards!"

A Marvel fanboy I was when I first started seriously collecting along with a few DCs once in a while. Then the anniversary issues would hit. The Ron Marz Ron Lim Silver Surfer run? I had each issue till issue 50 came out. It sold out before I was even out of school due to the foil cover at the time. I couldn't track down the issue at the time and it was part of a crossover so I stopped getting Silver Surfer. Ironically now that issue is easy to get.

Avengers and Captain America I was collecting and then their anniversary issues hit and the price for the issues increased. Since I was just mowing yards at the time for money I didn't have the money to buy them due to the increase and the fact I was buying for what was at the time a lot of Marvel comics. I got the issues after those and of course a lot happened in issue 350 of Captain America. Avengers had an odd membership at the time. The "Forgotten One" was indeed a character that could stay forgotten. The Inferno crossover also left a bad taste for me. So after trying to stick with the Avengers I dropped it. The Avengers "Siege" storyline where the Masters of Evil overtook the Avengers Mansion is a favorite Avengers story and I was hoping for a return to greatness.

After years of being a Marvel fan, DC hooked me. New Titans with the first original Titans Hunt storyline stands out as a favorite storyline even today, the BWA HA HA Justice League International, Wally West as the Flash, Batman, Detective Comics, Green Arrow, and more were my new comics of choice.

The comic stores would change where I shopped at over time. One had an employee that just was rude as heck. Another had to deal with the birth of the internet. Meaning people starting buying for cheaper off the internet and this noticeably rubbed the owner of the comic and game store the wrong way. Which is understandable. I go through comic buyers that want discounts and with gamers, at times, whose mentality is play for as cheap as possible in store and buy off the internet a lot. At another store, I would become friends with one of the owners and then he would move back out of state. To prove it is a small world after all, he had an encounter with the person who threatened to break the kid's fingers at the same store I went to years ago. He felt like he was treated rudely and opened up his own store in central Iowa even though he lived out of state at the time and moved to Iowa. For over a decade he would be part owner of the store before selling out and moving back out of state.

The enjoyment of collecting comics for me was then lacking. Things change. They always do. I just didn't feel the excitement of collecting comics where I was shopping. I felt like just a number. Which it is their business so they get to do what they want. Though I myself felt the need for a comic store that was one I myself would enjoy.

For years I had watched and made mental notes about what I liked about certain comic stores. Then I did the plan for a while stage. Figuring out the costs. And it was a lot of money.

There was what I wanted for a store. The dream. And there was reality. Thankfully, I went with reality and limited the costs. After a while, I started carrying Magic the Gathering and other games. When I opened, I didn't even know Magic the Gathering was still around. And, of course, the day I opened just happened to be the day a new set of Magic came out. After six years Rodman Comics is doing well. 2017 looks a heck of lot better than 2016. Our internet sales alone set a record. Though it could still be a roller coaster. Meaning things tend to change quickly. November of 2016 was harsh. The first half of December wasn't much better. Then the last half December we were making some serious money.

End of flashback music.

So what is the point of the story? If there hadn't been comics in other locations than comic stores odds are I never would have gotten into comics. Or stayed with comics after the unpleasant encounter at a comic store as a kid.

The more businesses carrying comics the better. The more exposure the better. Though, of course, I find it foolish to open a comic store near an already established comic store. That is just trying to cannibalize a market. Though it happens a lot.

I, of course, encourage people to buy from comic stores since I own one. The more comic stores along with places that sell comics nationwide the better I feel. I enjoy talking with like-minded comic store owners. The first Diamond Summit was enjoyable for me. Hoping that next year that the Diamond Summit is in Vegas. No such luck. It has been years since Diamond has been there, so come on! I wish I could travel more to the various comic store owner get togethers. This is a way for me to share with my fellow comic store owners along with people interested in comics. And for that, I thank Rich and Bleeding Cool for letting me.

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