C orbit Wilkins, president of Captain Comics, Inc., Boise, Meridian, and Idaho Falls, ID, said, ' On Saturday, our stores sold over double our normal sales.'

Joey Boyack, owner of Comic Kings, Virginia Beach,VA: Our day turned out pretty good today, as we saw a lot of new faces that came in looking for the free comics.

ICv2 took in the 2002 Book Expo America show (BEA) at the Javits Center in New York City on Friday, May 3, where the comic publisher mood was upbeat, with booming sales to the book trade a common refrain.

Comic and graphic novel orders (dollars) surged again for May 2002, continuing the torrid growth that began in the fourth quarter of 2001.

In-store gaming events have become a critical part of marketing games in recent years. W e looked for retailers that run a lot of events in their stores to gain the benefit of their experience.

Darin Erickson runs Amazing Comics & Cards, a 4000-square foot pop culture store in a Target-anchored shopping center in Long Beach, California.

Comic and graphic novel orders from pop culture stores jumped sharply in April, posting the best dollar total since January and ending four consecutive months of seasonal declines.

Estimated quantities for initial orders on graphic novels shipping in April 2002 from pop culture stores ordering from Diamond US.

The game industry gathers in Las Vegas next week, in a year that looks to have continuing change after a tumultuous, mostly successful 2001.

January is a transition month in the pop culture products business, with the first week or two typically showing strong post-Christmas sales, followed by slowing traffic as the winter doldrums set in. But there was a lot of activity in pop culture stores this January, with especially strong releases in the comic category.