ReedPOP acquired the MCM Comic Con. The acquisition takes effect immediately and its impact will begin to be seen and felt on all 2018 events.
According to the press release from ReedPOP, the MCM Comic Con show draws close to 300,000 fans and cosplayers to events in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Liverpool and Belfast.
“For nearly a decade I’ve watched with great admiration as the MCM brand grew in size, scale and quality, as well as in the hearts and minds of UK fans. I could not be more proud and humbled to team up with the MCM team to bring two world-class pop culture event companies together,” said Lance Fensterman, Global Head of ReedPOP. “The addition of the MCM brand extends the reach and influence of the ReedPOP portfolio and further solidifies our place as the number one producer of fan events across the globe. We cannot wait to work with the MCM team to build even bigger and better events for fans in the UK.”
ReedPOP created teh New York ComicCon, the PAX gaming events, C2E2 in Chicago, and Emerald city ComicCon in Seattle. The organization, which is an offshoot of the Reed Exhibitions (part of RELX Group), also created the Star Wars Celebration events with LucasFilm.
MCM Comic Con was co-founded by Bryan Cooney premiering the show in 2002 as the London Expo. The next few years saw London Expo grow and flourish. In 2004, it rebranded as London MCM Expo – the ‘MCM’ standing for ‘Movies, Comics, Media’; and in 2005, it took the first steps that would transform it from a collectors’ and autograph event into a comic con, with the addition of dedicated comics and anime areas plus film and TV content. More recent years saw MCM spread its wings, launching events across the UK.
“Everyone at MCM is delighted to be joining the ReedPOP family. I have visited NYCC many times and thought how cool would it be to work with Lance and ReedPOP. Today, all my wishes are granted. I look forward to launching MCM into a higher orbit of popular culture’s greatest shows alongside ReedPOP”.
