Diamond Comics Distributors to Resume Operations in May

In a letter sent to comic retailers and publishers today, Diamond Comics Distributors announced their plans to resume distributing operations mid-to-late May.

Diamond states in the letter: “We must find that delicate balance between managing health and safety concerns, meeting the pent-up demand for product and working with retailers whose situations differ, and whose need for product may have changed.”

There’s a great many aspects of reopening that need to be evaluated, starting with making sure that the health and safety of their employees and clients is not compromised by resuming operations. Diamond has also been talking to retailers and publishers to decide on dates to look at reopening. Retailers also will be able to adjust order quantities to support the current world climate with COVID-19, meaning that because demand is lower, retailers will be able to order lower supplies.

Diamond closes the letter by stating: “While we look forward to the resumption of weekly new product, we know that many retailers continue to take advantage of restocks of backlist product via Diamond’s Retailer Services Website. We encourage retailers to ensure their Comic Shop Locator Service listings are up-to-date with services offered, such as delivery or curbside service, and that store hours are accurate. This will help direct customers to stores that can continue to meet their needs through this time.”

It should further be mentioned that IDW’s Sonic the Hedgehog comics resuming production are in limbo; no decision has been reached on this yet and the timeline is to be determined.

The situation will continue to change as more information about the virus comes to light and the moves to reopen the economy are discussed. We will keep everyone informed on the developments.

Full letter below:

“Although we are not yet on the other side, we are tracking COVID-19 developments daily and starting to see signs of the spread slowing in certain areas. Like you, we are thinking about and planning for when and how we will restart the shipping of new weekly product. We have been closely watching the news, listening to our retailer and publisher partners and considering the many points of view as we decide, as an industry, how to proceed.

With health and safety of employees, retailers and customers a top priority, we need to be very deliberate about how we restart and scale operations. We must find that delicate balance between managing health and safety concerns, meeting the pent-up demand for product and working with retailers whose situations differ, and whose need for product may have changed.

While there are many steps and conversations that need to happen between today and resuming distribution of new weekly product, we are currently targeting mid- to late-May with the hope that, as an industry, we can all work toward that timeframe. Of course, as we have all seen, target dates sometimes need to be adjusted in this ever-changing new-normal. But we cannot wait for firm dates. We have started the planning process and are having these important conversations with publishers and retailers so that once we have more clarity, we are in a position to restart and scale operations over time.

Our intent is to restart the weekly FOC process once we have worked with publishers on a new schedule for product releases. Product that was originally scheduled for release on April 1st and 8th will be distributed over a longer period, allowing publishers to work with printers to deliver new product without further interruption. Retailers will be able to adjust order quantities for those products, making sure that they are receiving quantities that make sense for the current situation in their stores.

While we look forward to the resumption of weekly new product, we know that many retailers continue to take advantage of restocks of backlist product via Diamond’s Retailer Services Website. We encourage retailers to ensure their Comic Shop Locator Service listings are up-to-date with services offered, such as delivery or curbside service, and that store hours are accurate. This will help direct customers to stores that can continue to meet their needs through this time.

Please also continue to consult our Coronavirus Resources page for an ongoing list of resources available to retailers. Additionally, retailerservices.diamondcomics.com/coronavirus is a single source for other Coronavirus-related information from Diamond and our publishers.

Thank you for your understanding and support as we all plan for our future. We are committed to communicating with you during this process and look forward to our continued partnership.”

This post was originally written by the author for TSSZ News.