Cliff Thompson Shares His Story Running a Comic Shop

In this interview, we sit down with Cliff Thompson, the owner of Danny the Comic Shop, a vibrant hub for comic book enthusiasts. Cliff shares his journey from a passionate comic book fan to a successful business owner, offering insights into the challenges and triumphs of running a comic book store. He discusses the strategies that have helped his shop thrive in a competitive market and his vision for the future of the comic book industry.

Join us as we explore the world of comic books through the eyes of an experienced and dedicated shop owner.

Inspiration and Vision

SBS – What inspired you to start Danny the Comic Shop, and what was your initial vision for the business?

Cliff – In many ways, it was timing that inspired me the most. I had been laid off from my job earlier in the year and was not inspired by any jobs I was finding to apply to, so I decided to follow my long-held passion for sequential art and my desire to run my own business. I felt like it was a now-or-never situation. If I didn’t try this now, I likely wouldn’t ever.

The vision for Danny the Comic Shop is a bookstore for comics. What that means to me is that I wanted to create a welcoming space that is more like an independent bookstore than a traditional comic shop. This is to say, I am creating a niche boutique that is welcoming to all sorts of people, especially people who wouldn’t regularly think of themselves as a comic shop patron. The store has comfortable seats for sitting and browsing. I do not cater to collectors; I cater to readers. I am very focused on promoting the joy of reading and informing people of the large diversity of stories found in the comic medium. While I love superheroes, comics should not necessarily be synonymous with just that one genre.

Curating Comic Selection

SBS – How do you curate your selection of comic books and graphic novels?

Cliff – It started with books I either loved or knew were essential to the medium — classics and current favorites. The store is not large, so I have to work with the space available. I carry a wide variety, with low stock, no more than a few copies of any title.

Of course, I carry popular titles, but my goal is to focus on quality, diversity, and inclusivity. At every opportunity, I will highlight books by BIPOC, and especially LGBTQIA+ creators.

With the goal of dismantling the stereotype that comics are all just superhero stories for adolescent boys, I carry comic cookbooks, graphic memoirs, children’s and young adult-oriented books, independent & crowdfunded rarities, etc.

Staying Updated

SBS – How do you stay updated with the latest trends and releases in the comic book industry?

Cliff – I follow a couple of great industry newsletters (The Beat & ICv2 Daily Insider), as well as publisher/distributor newsletters. Another great source is following creators directly on social media.

Customer Loyalty

SBS – What strategies have you found effective in attracting and retaining loyal customers?

Cliff – I carry a variety of titles that aren’t often found at traditional comic shops. Much of what I offer is just not available at other stores in the area, or it’s only found at big box book store chains where the focus is not on the comic medium, and there are no experts to help you find something you’ll love.

There is another strategy, which is not unique to my store but is an industry-standard, and that is the pull list. A pull list is when a customer subscribes to an ongoing monthly comic. When that comic arrives, I hold a copy for them so it will not sell out before they can get to the store.

I also have loyalty cards that earn a customer a 20% discount after six transactions.

Lastly, I send out a weekly newsletter of my own, which keeps customers up to date on events, new books, and other news.

Industry Changes

SBS – How has the comic book industry changed since you started, and how have you adapted to those changes?

Cliff – I just hit one year in business, so not much has changed, LOLZ.

One very recent annoying change is that a wonderful new publisher (DSTLRY) just announced that they took an exclusivity distribution deal with Diamond. This is a problem for me because I am too small to meet the minimum monthly order requirement for Diamond, so I don’t have an account with them. Now I am locked out of receiving DSTLRY books, which were doing very well in my store and I think are of high quality. I do plan on making it work so I can become a Diamond customer, but I wish I didn’t have to. Neither of the other two periodical comics distributors (Penguin Random House & Lunar) have minimum requirements.

Inventory Management

SBS – How do you handle inventory management, especially with vintage and rare comics?

Cliff – I don’t deal in collectibles. I understand the collectible market and the link between collectors and comics, but that’s not the focus at Danny the Comic Shop. I love collecting things for the love of the thing itself, but in my opinion, the collecting as an investment mentality has done a lot of damage to the comic market. Comics are entertainment, not investments.

Balancing Customer Needs

SBS – How do you balance the needs of casual readers and serious collectors?

Cliff – Danny the Comic Shop carries a wide variety of genres in the comics medium, but we’re not really a “collectors” store.

I love my collection of comics from when I was a kid, but our goal is to get people reading, not to bag up a comic and shove it away in a box. It’s hard to enjoy the wonderful writing and beautiful art when you lock it away.

Rewarding Aspects

SBS – What has been the most rewarding aspect of running Danny the Comic Shop?

Cliff – Every time someone comes in and says something along the lines of “Wow, I didn’t know there was something this cool in the area. I’m so happy you’re here. We love supporting local stores.”

Community Building

SBS – How do you approach community building within the comic book fanbase?

Cliff – For me, it’s about showcasing unique, diverse, and inclusive content. I believe this allows for a welcoming atmosphere that speaks to many people.

We are also blessed to be part of the 40 West Arts District, which means we get to partake in the monthly First Friday Art Crawl.

Future Plans

SBS – What future plans do you have for Danny the Comic Shop?

Cliff – It is a big goal to become part of the Comics Hub platform, which would massively improve our customer service and convenience.

Industry Evolution

SBS – How do you see the comic book industry evolving in the next five to ten years, and what steps are you taking to stay ahead?

Cliff – Like many entertainment industries, the biggest change has been and is the devaluing of physical media. The move to reading digital comics is not great for bookstores, comics, or otherwise. The proliferation of online shopping and the corporatization of everything is not good for any local business, but I have hope in the consumer. There are many people out here who prefer to shop at a brick-and-mortar store where they can speak to an expert and want to support us. The death of comic book stores, and comics in general, has been a story for decades, yet I know that there is so much exciting work going on, and the medium is actually expanding more than ever.

I just hope to be here to provide the people with this great product.

Advice for Aspiring Owners

SBS – What advice would you give to someone looking to start their own comic book shop?

Cliff – Don’t. Unless you want to use up all your savings, work seven days a week for part-time pay, hold another job to actually pay your bills, or go into massive debt, all for the love of the medium, don’t do it.