Posted in: Ablaze Publishing, AfterShock, Ahoy, Archie, AWA, Comics, Comics Publishers, Dark Horse Comics, DC Comics, IDW, Image, Marvel Comics, Oni Press, Opus Comics, Vault | Tagged: archie, diamond

Archie Comics Joins Diamond Deluxe, Hope They Survive The Experience

Diamond Comic Distributors has announced an expanded partnership with Archie Comics as Archie moves into the Deluxe Tier of publishers.

Published Thu, 29 Feb 2024 08:57:12 -0600

by Rich Johnston

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Diamond Comic Distributors has announced an expanded partnership with Archie Comics as Archie moves into the Deluxe Tier of publishers. This means Archie will be exclusive with Diamond but also gain greater prominence within Previews. But is it a poison chalice? Archie Comics will be joining AfterShock Comics, Ablaze Publishing, Frank Miller Presents, Opus Comics, Massive Publishing, and Zenescope Entertainment.

AfterShock has declared bankruptcy and has reduced publication to a crawl, Opus Comics declared they wouldn't publish any more comics that creators hadn't been paid for, and so stopped publishing, and Frank Miller Presents has reduced soliciting new comics this year as well. That's half the Deluxe Publishers seemingly not publishing anything at all right now.

With Marvel, DC, Image and Dark Horse going exclusive with Lunar and Penguin Random House, with Scout, AWA, Ahoy, Vault, and Oni going joint-distribution with Diamond and Lunar, publishers are in a better position to negotiate with Diamond.

"Archie is elated to expand our partnership with Diamond and join the Deluxe Publisher Tier," said Jonathan Betancourt, Archie Comics SVP. "We have continued to grow after nearly a century of publishing, and our biggest stories are still to come in the years ahead. Our sincere thanks to retailers and the entire Diamond team for their support."

"Archie is not only one of the biggest brands in comics, they're one of the most recognizable brands across all media, and I couldn't be more thrilled to expand our partnership with them," said Tim Lenaghan, Chief Purchasing Officer for Geppi Family Enterprises. "We're excited for their plans for the remainder of 2024 and looking forward to amplifying their message across the industry."

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