By John Jackson Miller on 1/24/2008 12:00 AM

The comics industry saw its seventh consecutive year of increased sales to comics shops in 2007.

Sales to retailers increased in every category tracked, including comic book units, which rose 4% to their highest level since 1997. Overall, Diamond Comic Distributors' sales of comic books and trade paperbacks to comics shops in North America were just shy of $430 million, up nearly $35 million over 2006. I estimate the figure to be the highest for the direct market since at least 1995, which was the second year of the fall-off from 1993's astronomical market peak.

Growth in trade paperback sales appears to have outpaced that of comic books in the direct market, resuming the trend seen earlier in the decade. The average price of comic books also increased again, to a weighted average of $3.17 for the year. Some summary statistics for the month, quarter, and year:

TOP 300 COMICS UNIT SALES
December 2007: 7.03 million copies, up 1%
Q4 2007: 21.12 million copies, up less than 1%
2007 FINAL: 85.27 million comic books, up 4%

TOP 300 COMICS DOLLAR SALES
December 2007: $22.61 million, up 3%
Q4 2007: $67.28 million, up 3%
2007 FINAL: $270 million, up 7%

TOP 100 TRADE PAPERBACK DOLLAR SALES
December 2007: $4.22 million, up 11%
Q4 2007: $15.72 million, up 15%
2007 FINAL: $57.15 million, up 18%

TOP 300 COMICS + TOP 100 TRADE PAPERBACK DOLLAR SALES
December 2007: $26.83 million, up 4%
Q4 2007: $82.99 million, up 5%
2007 FINAL: $327.1 million, up 9%

OVERALL DIAMOND SALES (including all comics, trades, and magazines)
December 2007: $35.88 million, up 7%
Q4 2007: $111.1 million, up 7%
2007 FINAL: $429.9 million, up 9%

Click to see the charts for December 2007, and the comparative numbers for 1996-2007.

It is important to note what these numbers are and what they are not. The estimated $429.9 million includes every comic book, trade paperback, and magazine sold by Diamond Comic Distributors to its retail customers in North America. It does not count sales overseas. It does not count sales by other distributors through convenience stores, newsstands, and, importantly, mass-market bookstores. (The latter category's contribution is considerable.) And there is no guarantee that the comics shops actually sold all these comics — although sell-through rates today are far higher than they were in, say, the early 1990s ... Read More »

Comments (3)

By John Jackson Miller on 12/24/2007 12:00 AM

Comics orders slowed year-over-year in November, but trade paperback orders jumped, helping keep 2007 on pace for a year of growth in all categories.

TOP 300 UNIT SALES
6.95 million copies, down 13% from same month last year
2007 YTD: 74.88 million copies, up 5% from 2006 YTD

TOP 300 DOLLAR SALES
$21.75 million, down 12% from last same month last year
2007 YTD:  $247.39 million, up 7% from 2006 YTD

TOP 100 TRADE PAPERBACKS
$5.99 million, up 29% from last same month last year
2007 YTD: $52.93 million, up 19% from 2006 YTD

COMBINED TOP 300 COMICS & TOP 100 TRADES
$27.74 million, down 5% from same month last year
2007 YTD: $300.31 million, up 9% from 2006 YTD

OVERALL DIAMOND SALES (including all comics, TPBs, and magazines)
$36.29 million, down 8% from same month last year ($40.51 million with UK)
2007 YTD: $394.02 million, up %9 from 2006 YTD

Detailed data for the month and sales charts are here.

By John Jackson Miller on 11/28/2007 12:00 AM

Comics sales soared in the October 2007 report. A major factor in comparisons this month was the five week month; the same month in 2006 was a four-week month.

DC led market share categories for the first time in many months, in part due to landing 107 items in the Top 300 versus Marvel’s 80. Image’s dollar share of the Top 300 comics actually came in sixth; it landed in fifth place in the overall category.

TOP 300 UNIT SALES
7.14 million copies, up 17% from same month last year
2007 YTD: 71.3 million copies, up 7% from 2006 YTD

TOP 300 DOLLAR SALES
$22.92 million, up 20% from last same month last year
2007 YTD: $225.64 million, up 10% from 2006 YTD

TOP 100 TRADE PAPERBACKS
$5.51 million, up 6% from last same month last year
2007 YTD: $46.94 million, up 17% from 2006 YTD

COMBINED TOP 300 COMICS & TOP 100 TRADES
$28.42 million, up 17% from same month last year
2007 YTD: $272.57 million, up 11% from 2006 YTD

OVERALL DIAMOND SALES (including all comics, TPBs, and magazines)
$38.96 million, up 27% from same month last year ($43.72 million with UK)
2007 YTD: $357.75 million, up 11% from 2006 YTD

By John Jackson Miller on 10/24/2007 12:00 AM

The September numbers for Diamond's sales of comic books to comic book stores in North America are up, and the market continues toward a strong year with positive third-quarter results across all categories.

TOP 300 UNIT SALES
6.69 million copies, up 1% from same month last year
3Q: 22.03 million copies, up 3% over 3Q 2006
2007 YTD: 64.15 million copies, up 5% from 2006 YTD

TOP 300 DOLLAR SALES
$21.5 million, up 5% from last same month last year
3Q: $70.14 million copies, up 6% over 3Q 2006
2007 YTD: $202.72 million, up 9% from 2006 YTD

TOP 100 TRADE PAPERBACKS
$4.49 million, up 22% from last same month last year
3Q: $13.49 million, up 4% over 3Q 2006
2007 YTD: $41.43 million, up 19% from 2006 YTD

COMBINED TOP 300 COMICS & TOP 100 TRADES
$25.99 million, up 8% from same month last year
3Q: $83.63 million copies, up 6% over 3Q 2006
2007 YTD: $244.15 million, up 10% from 2006 YTD

OVERALL DIAMOND SALES (including all comics, TPBs, and magazines)
$32.68 million, up 6% from same month last year ($35.38 million with UK)
3Q: $108.68 million copies, up 9% over 3Q 2006
2007 YTD: $318.79 million, up 9% from 2006 YTD

Click for the full list of titles!

By John Jackson Miller on 9/25/2007 12:00 AM

And the data for August 2007 is now up -- bringing to an even 11 years the archives of estimates of Diamond Comics Distributors' sales available here.

A five-week month compared to a five ship week month from last year, August 2007 still managed improvements in all categories except for the Top 100 Trade Paperbacks. The 300th place comic book had orders of 2,500 copies, which is a far sight better than previous years where that figure had dropped close to 1,000 copies.

Overall, the comics direct market seems poised for another strong year. Up 10% after eight months, I might expect to see the overall figure for 2007 to wind up between $430-440 million.

One point on Diamond’s sales chart equals 770 copies.

TOP 300 UNIT SALES
7.69 million copies, up 4% from last August
2007 YTD: 57.46 million copies, up 6% from 2006 YTD

TOP 300 DOLLAR SALES
$24.62 million, up 7% from last August
2007 YTD: $181.22 million, up 9% from 2006 YTD

TOP 100 TRADE PAPERBACKS
$4.63 million, down 6% from last August
2007 YTD: $36.94 million, up 19% from 2006 YTD

COMBINED TOP 300 COMICS & TOP 100 TRADES
$29.26 million, up 5% from last August
2007 YTD: $218.16 million, up 11% from 2006 YTD

OVERALL DIAMOND SALES (including all comics, TPBs, and magazines)
$39.18 million, up 5% from last August ($43.19 million with UK)
2007 YTD: $286.11 million, up 10% from 2006 YTD