Posted in: Comics | Tagged: comic shop, Fat Jack's, philadelphia

Fat Jack's, The Oldest Comic Shop In Philadelphia, Needs Help

Longtime readers of Bleeding Cool will be familiar with comic book store Fat Jack's Comicrypt in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the longest contributor to the Bleeding Cool Bestseller List when that was a thing, and approaching its fiftieth birthday as a comic book store. Eric S. Partridge of the store posts the news on GofundMe.

"Well, friends, there's no other way to say this. We're in a terrible situation and we desperately need your help. Forgive me if this is all over the place. Mike didn't want me to ask for help, as we received help before and gotten out of debt, and he's been trying to make it work for the last year and a half, but it's been tough and I was finally able to convince him to do this, and am asking as I'm putting my thoughts down.

"We are working as hard as we can, to overcome the non-existent and slow sales while we were closed, we just can't 'get there. Right now, we need to put together $20,000, in a hurry. This is not the totality of our problems. That would need (at least) $80,000. but to keep our head above water and ensure we can get our new books still, we need to raise these funds as soon as possible to keep moving forward.

"How did we get here? The main reason is, of course, covid closedowns from a year and a half ago have finally caught up to us. We took SUCH a hit during the pandemic, and even though we filled out the paperwork for the second PPP funds, the government ran out of money by the time they got to our paperwork. We've been trying to make it work ever since. But in addition to the shut down and lost sales, since then inflation and lost sales from some of our subscribers and regular customers unable to pick up their books has been adding to the problems and hitting harder and harder lately.

"My boss, and friend, Mike has been pushing to not ask for help for over a year. He could have asked sooner, but didn't want to burden anyone but himself. Mike thought we could make it with hard work and serving the community, but we've fallen further behind. But who or what is Fat Jack's? Over 46 years ago, our founder and boss, Mike, started selling comics at the beginning of the comics market and helped build it in the Phil Seuling days and one of the first comic stores in the country, and what was to become the oldest comic shop in Philadelphia and one of the 10 oldest in the country, if not the world.

"Through all of this, Mike's suffered a bout of illness and working while sick, even ending up for a very short time in the hospital. And you can imagine how hard it is to stay on top of things whether sick for an extended period of time or worse from a hospital bed. Fat Jack's has been a staple in the comics industry. We've had great creators such as Matt Wagner, Joe Matt and Bill Willingham as customers and friends, and had signings with other creators including Neil Gaiman, Neal Adams, Tom King, Charles Soule, Garth Ennis, JG Jones, Darick Robertson and many others.

"Who or what is Fat Jack's? The dedicated employees who work so hard to keep things running smoothly. And the past employees who are still like family. The customers are also part of our family. Daily I hear from someone "I used to come here as a teenager!!" Some of these customers have been here nearly from the beginning. I'm asking for all of us, and especially for Mike. He's been running the store through thick and thin for almost 50 years. It would be great for Fat Jack's to be here to celebrate our 50th Anniversary. I know that's a bunch of people that you don't know, but they're deserving. and in need. Can you possibly help us out? Help us continue to bring comics to the community and fans? Any and all help is appreciated."

Nick Barrucci of Dynamite Entertainment has donated $500, with other donations from Filip Sablik, Dan Wickline, Matthew Klein, and more.

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