U.S. Graphic Novel Sales Hit $245M; New York Comic-Con Ready to Go
This story originally appeared in PW Comics Week on February 24, 2006 Sign up now!
by Calvin Reid, PW Comics Week -- Publishers Weekly, 2/24/2006
Despite some slowdown in the rate of growth, graphic novels continue to register impressive sales gains in the bookstore channel. Retail graphic novel sales in the U.S and Canada grew by about 18%, to an estimated $245 million, in total sales last year, according to the annual report from Icv2, a news Web site that covers American pop culture including graphic novels, manga, toys, and TV and film merchandise. ICv2 CEO Milton Griepp released the report during the ICv2 Graphic Novel Conference, a one-day event at New York City's Javits Center as a precursor to this weekend's New York Comic-Con.
It was just the right news to kick off the first national comics convention in New York City in many years. Griepp delivered the results from his annual report to a room of about 200 book and comics industry professionals on hand for panels on graphic novel trends. And the makeup of the conference audience was as impressive as the lineup of panelists on the dais. Vertigo's Karen Berger, comics legend Denis Kitchen and Viz Media's Liza Coppola listened to panels before exchanging places on the stage with the likes of Diamond's Bill Schanes, Tokyopop's Mike Kiley and Mike Bailiff of ADV Films.
Griepp reported that about 2,500 book format comics in fiction and nonfiction were published in 2005, including about 1,088 manga titles and roughly 815 American titles. Although the growth of graphic novels in bookstores was not quite as dramatic as in the past, the bookstore market (including specialty retailers) nevertheless managed to account for twice the sales dollars of the comics shop market. Of the $245 million in annual graphic novel sales, general bookstores accounted for roughly $167 million, while comics shops accounted for $78 million in sales. "This represents an opportunity for the category to become an even bigger part of the book industry," Griepp said.
Manga sales continue to be impressive, representing about $145 million of the 2006 graphic novel sales in the U.S. and Canada. Manga sales grew about 25% in bookstores, Griepp estimates, and slightly less than that in comics shops. While manga sales are better overall in general bookstores, Griepp noted that the very best individual stores selling manga are generally comics shops.
Shelf space continues to be an issue. Bookstores are not adding space as quickly. Griepp says that comics stores, which have lagged overall in selling manga, are beginning to see manga as a better product than selling back issues of periodical comics and are adding to shelf space to accommodate the category.
Following Griepp's report were panels on graphic novels as literature; another focused on anime and manga; and a panel featuring buyers, both retailers and distributors. Overall the conference provided an impressive snapshot of the current market for book-format comics.
And at the cocktail party afterward, there was much talk about the convention's pre-registration figures (approximately 10,000 fans and about 3,000 professionals). It looks as though the exhibition floor of the New York Comic-Con will be a very crowded place by Saturday afternoon.
