The number of comic stores as measured by accounts of Diamond Comic Distributors, the sole distributor for the channel in the U.S. and Canada, is up 2.7% in 2016 vs. the same period in 2015, the company told retailers at its Retailer Appreciation Lunch at San Diego Comic-Con.  No number of stores was given, but we believe that number to be somewhere north of 3,000 in the U.S. and Canada.

The change in store count came amid a first half that was down substantially until June, which pulled sales back up closer to even (see “’Civil War II’ and ‘Rebirth’ Launches Bring Direct Market Back”).  But sales to the comic specialty market for all products combined, which were down 6.9% for the first half of 2016, were still up substantially over 2014 and 2013 (6.8% and 10.8%, respectively), Diamond said.  July also started strong, with Diamond Distribution Centers processing a record number of units in the first two weeks of the month.

Comic retailers we talked to at San Diego were mostly positive about the market, with optimism that a turnaround in sales of their second largest publisher would lead to a better second half. That kind of optimism is what leads to the opening of more stores, a trend that seems likely to continue.