PRESS RELEASE
SLG Publishing’s founder and president Dan Vado announced that the company would accept orders directly from comic book retailers for it’s comics and graphic novel products in the wake of the continuing issues with Diamond Comics Distribution.
“Truth be told, we have always sold directly to retailers,” said SLG President Dan Vado. “Selling directly to retailers was one of the cornerstones of our early success when nobody would backstock our titles.”
SLG Publishing, which is best known for its eclectic creator-owned titles like Johnny the Homicidal Maniac by Jhonen Vasquez and Rex Liris by James Turner, will now put a renewed effort into selling to comic shops directly both for its backlist and new releases.
“Diamond’s collapse has forced a lot of publishers to rethink their relationship with the market,” Vado continued. “For us, this is an opportunity to return to our roots and re-engage directly with what has always been a steady and reliable and important stream — comic shop owners.”
For now, retailers should contact the company directly via email to place orders. “I realize that, for the most part, people are mostly concerned about the one or two titles that have always been perennial sellers, and we have always worked diligently to keep them in print,” Vado added “However we still publish 3-4 new books per year and will gladly offer copetitive wholesale terms on those titles as well.” Retailers can expect a 50% discount and can get discounted shipping rates for orders over $300.
SLG is working on a website solution for wholesale orders, so in the interim, retailers can reach out directly to the company via email at dvado@slgpubs.com “Diamond, or whoever, still has inventory on most of our titles, and they can be reordered from them until they run out, but it might not be a bad idea to reach out and establish an account with us to make future ordering and updates easy”
Vado added that he had no illusions about the amount of business that might come the company’s way through direct distribution “It’s easier not to carry something that only sells a few copies here and there, but I think there is a virtue for retailers to maintain a diverse look in their stores and not concede every single sale to Amazon.”
Established in 1986, SLG Publishing is a San Jose, California-based publisher of comic books, graphic novels and related merchandise. Some of SLG’s more notable comics and creators have included Johnny the Homicidal Maniac by Jhonen Vasquez, Milk and Cheese by Evan Dorkin and The War At Ellsmere by Faith Erin Hicks.
SLG rolled out a podcast and media company this year with the debut of their first podcast The Unexpected Mentor.
