ReedPOP has acquired Emerald City Comicon (ECCC), the annual Seattle show that drew 70,000 attendees last year. Founded by Seattle-area retailer Jim Demonakos (The Comic Stop) in 2003, the show has grown rapidly, and become an annual destination for publishers, talent, and fans. The next show is planned for March 27-29; 80,000 fans are expected.
Both sides in the deal spoke of the benefits both for the local show and for the ReedPOP organization. “We are huge fans of what ReedPOP is doing across the globe in this pop culture space and the ECCC team is excited to have them help us elevate the fan experience at our event,” Demonakos said. “We are also very much looking forward to bringing the ECCC brand of fan-focused events to help ReedPOP amplify their conventions even further."
ReedPOP Global Senior Vice President Lance Fensterman echoed the sentiment. "The addition of ECCC to the ReedPOP family is a huge win and we couldn’t be more excited to see how we can make each other better,” he said. "The ECCC team is tremendous and have put together an amazing show. I know there are things we can introduce to the mix and look even more forward to what the ECCC team can bring to all our events around the globe.”
This acquisition will give ReedPOP three major comic shows in the U.S.: New York Comic Con, C2E2 (Chicago), and ECCC.
ReedPOP also operates another fan event in Seattle, PAX Prime, and a related developer’s conference. It will be interesting to see what kinds of cross-pollination ReedPOP attempts between the primarily comic fan base of ECCC and the gamers of Pax Prime.
The con scene has been changing rapidly (see “A Trend-Setting Year for Fan Conventions”), and ECCC is a prime example of the regional shows that have been the source of much of the growth as the biggest shows, San Diego Comic-Con and New York Comic Con, max out their venues.
ReedPOP has been growing more rapidly internationally, adding shows in India (Comic Con India), Australia (see “ReedPOP Ties Up with Oz Comic-Con”), and France (Paris Comic Con).
