What a difference a year makes. One of the biggest pieces of news out of last year’s annual ComicsPRO conference was that Diamond Comic Distributors was planning to cut its shipping—a welcome break for retailers in a year of weak sales of comics periodical. One year later, Diamond is in the midst of bankruptcy proceedings and sales of floppies are flying high following the debut, last year, of successful new lines from both Marvel and DC.
Still, the comics business feels a bit like the point in a Fantastic Four comic when Doctor Doom is finally defeated—and then Galactus shows up. The sector now faces potentially historic uncertainties including looming tariffs and whatever will happen to Diamond. And yet the mood was overwhelmingly positive at this year’s ComicsPRO conference, held February 19–22 in Glendale, Calif., by the direct market retailer organization of the same name. This year’s meeting showcased a buffet of new publishers and approaches in a market that still has many options on tap for reaching consumers.
“I came into this weekend expecting doom and gloom or doubt about distribution problems with Diamond and tariffs,” said comics marketing consultant Adam Phillips of Untold Stories Marketing. “There’s some concern for sure, but retailers are really hopeful and looking for solutions to build a future that is sustainable.”
According to ComicsPRO executive director Marco Davanzo, in-person attendance was about the same as last year, but online participation was up. The Glendale location led to an increase in publisher interest—47 exhibitors, up from 27 in 2024, when the meeting was held in Pittsburgh, Pa.—but space is still an issue, he said. “I suspect that next year we’ll be closer to 60 or 70 exhibitors,” he said, adding that, in order to fit everyone in that case, “we might need to have more segmentation.”
As is typical, the show included a number of publisher announcements. DC Comics pulled out all the stops with a “Royal Rumble” of surprises. Writer Matt Fraction and artist Jorge Jiménez were revealed as the creative team for a new Batman #1, and Fraction’s in-person entrance to the panel got a huge reaction from retailers.
An even bigger surprise came when a keynote speech by Anne DePies, DC’s general manager and senior VP, turned into an extremely rare joint appearance by DC and Marvel’s respective editors-in-chief, Marie Javins and C.B. Cebulski. Those in the room quickly deduced the pair were there to announce a new DC/Marvel crossover— something that last happened more than 20 years ago. While details were sparse and the team-up comprises a mere pair of one-shots, getting parent companies Disney and WBD to sign off on a crossover is a sign that nothing is impossible in today’s comics market.
Diamond’s dissolution has left many small publishers scrambling for space on shop shelves, but retailers left the show excited by the possibilities presented by several new ventures. Ignition Press, helmed by industry veterans Filip Sablik, Jamie S. Rich, Jeremy Haun and Eric Gitter, announced a creator lineup through 2027 that includes Cullen Bunn, Jim McCann, Si Spurrier, Leah Williams, and Stephanie Williams, with Sablik promising “a plan based on the world as it exists today—not 1985 or even 1999.”
The Lab Press, another start-up focusing on graphic novels, created buzz through their production values alone. The press showcased deluxe slipcased hardcovers for graphic novel titles including their debut, The Essentials, written by entertainment veterans Luke Arnold and Chris "Doc" Wyatt and illustrated by an array of stars. Rekcah, another new player, made its commitment clear with The Future Is..., a series by Fred Van Lente and Ennio Bufi about online security with a 60-issue storyline already sketched out.
Bad Idea Comics has been selling direct to consumers sporadically since 2020, but announced plans to move into comics shops with Lunar Distribution—a move in a more traditional direction for a famously edgy publisher. According to CEO Dinesh Shamdasani, “When we launched, we were very noisy and annoying and complicated because the industry was simple. Since then we’ve seen other publishers come in and be noisy and be annoying like we are. And so it stopped being effective. It's time for us to be simple and be traditional.” Still, the press continued its tradition of unexpected marketing stunts at the show, this time at a launch party that included a rare variant for people who got free (real) tattoos.
Lunar Distribution co-owner Christina Merkler had a busy few days. The distributor was already making future plans for expansion when the Diamond news broke and publishers began a steady exodus from Diamond to Lunar, where executives realized that they would have to accelerate some of their plans—including acquiring more warehouse space. Picking up so many new clients, execs said, has been bracing, but challenging.
Lunar intends to keep cautious about adding new publishers, in order to avoid straining resources. “We’ve had to pivot on some plans,” Merkler said. “I have been very honest with every publisher I've signed on and let them know the situation. We don't want to be the biggest. We want to be the best. And in order to be the best, you have to focus on the things you are best at.”
Merkler foresees more team-ups in the future, in order for smaller publishers to survive: “There's a real opportunity here for some of these publishers to set their egos aside and partner with each other.” One such team-up is Massive Indies, a subdistribution program for smaller publishers run through Massive Publishing. Massive CEO and copublisher Michael Calero, noting that publishers participating in the program would be announced shortly, explained that, even as a sub-distributor, Massive has to be selective about who it carries in such a fragile market: “If even some of the best independent publishers and studios are in one spot, that makes it easier for retailers to say, ‘Okay, this is where I can order from.’ ”
Retailers still have good will towards innovative small presses, said Untold’s Phillips, who repped three companies at the show and signed two new clients while there. “The reaction to my clients was positive, but people raised legitimate questions about packaging and price points,” he said. “But these are all things that these publishers are very sensitive to, and they hope to make adjustments to make things easier for retailers to get on board.”
While some in attendance found the optimistic vibe at ComicsPRO was a temporary bubble against the chaos outside, it was also part of the positive dialog about the industry. As one marketing rep put it, “There are a lot of problems facing the industry, but all the people who can solve the problems are probably here.”
