Forbes Article: Surprising New Data Shows Comic Readers Are Leaving Superheroes
Found this article sad and disheartening but also informative and thought I'd share. I don't know what the solution would be, other than expanding beyond the direct market.
[URL="https://www.forbes.com/sites/robsalkowitz/2019/10/08/surprising-new-data-shows-comic-readers-are-leaving-superheroes-behind/?fbclid=IwAR13XYmgRe5yi_zEmgdsxs9lbXVbbLpAt3RWWQwD4nAOXBJUmz_6xDTOpwU#9a7ba924d680"]Forbes article link[/URL]
Excerpt: [I]"While comic shops tend to focus on longtime fans - often older readers who grew up on and collect superhero comics – mass-market bookstores sell to everyone, including younger readers and those outside of traditional comics fandom. Consequently, the books that are selling in bookstores are, generally, not superhero-oriented. According to Bookscan data shared at the conference, kid-oriented comics and graphic novels account for a whopping 41% of sell-through at bookstores; manga is 28%. Superhero content is less than 10%, down 9.6% year-over-year."[/I]
Graphics from article:
[IMG]https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5d9ca2a6793bd50006ea1527/960x0.jpg?cropX1=0&cropX2=720&cropY1=167&cropY2=849[/IMG]
[IMG]https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5d9ca38b67dd830006a2edb4/960x0.jpg?fit=scale[/IMG]