Posted in: Comics, Current News | Tagged: Ad Populum, AENT, diamond

Mike Schimmel Talks, Under Oath, About The Diamond Comics Firings

Former Diamond VP, Mike Schimmel, talks under oath, about the Diamond Comics firings, Ad Populum and coercing comic book publishers

Published Wed, 18 Jun 2025 07:57:04 -0500

by Rich Johnston

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Mike Schimmel is the former Vice President of Sales at Diamond Comic Distributors, at Diamond for 21 years, and at Capital City Distribution for over three years before that. Mike is now Senior Vice President of Sales at Alliance Entertainment (AENT) as of a few weeks ago. Bleeding Cool is continuing to cover the latest in AENT's response to the lawsuit made against them by Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop. Which was over the many, many, many issues regarding the Diamond Comic Distributors (DCD) Chapter 11 Bankruptcy proceedings. We looked at claims of AENT poaching Diamond staff and breaking NDAs, and of Ad Populum's treatment of comic book publishers after the deal, but what about the Diamond layoffs that began happening, as also reported by Bleeding Cool, the second the Diamond Comics purchase deal had been done?

Under the headline, "Sparkle Pop Engaged in Mass Terminations of Former DCD Employees", AENT's legal response states, "Another cost-cutting measure involved Sparkle Pop substantially cutting its payroll expenses. Sparkle Pop or DCD also sought to pressure employees into accepting significant pay cuts. For example, Mr. Weinshanker demanded that Mr. Schimmel take a 25% pay cut. He refused and on May 16, 2025, along with dozens of other employees, was terminated by DCD as part of Sparkle Pop's cost-cutting measures. In addition to Sparkle Pop's mass terminations, as employee morale tanked and instability permeated DCD, employees sought employment elsewhere. For example, as these former employees stated in their exit interviews:

Merchandise Team Manager: "sent out his resume a few months" before his termination "to get feelers for potential new employers" as he needed stability to support his family.
Sales Manager: Employee stated that AENT "did not poach her" and that she "applied to [AENT] months ago to see if there were any Buyer positions."
Business Development Manager: Employee stated that she was "frustrated that nothing was shared about DST being shut down after the sale and with no plan in place for 'what's next.'"
Executive Director of Applications Development: Employee stated that he "had been looking for a new job since the bankruptcy announcement was made in January 2025. He researched opportunities in a variety of industries."

As mentioned, Joel Weinshanker is the owner of Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop, and previously, we reported Ad Populum vs Sparkle Pop's legal suit as stating, "These employees, who the suit says had access to critical trade secrets, were allegedly hired by Alliance in violation of the NDA, which prohibited soliciting or hiring Diamond Comic employees until October 2026." AENT counters this but also had Mike Schimmel make a declaration under oath, which runs below. And may necessitate us making some updates to our Diamond Bankruptcy Timeline. Oh yes, and the reporting of that "chicken with idiots" line from Joel about comic publishers? That's from Mike.

"Immediately upon the Court's approval of the sale, Sparkle Pop sought to implement severe cost cuts without consideration of the impact the cuts would have on the business or employee morale. Notably, Sparkle Pop refused to pay certain vendors unless those vendors agreed to substantial discounts and extended payment terms, counter to the Sparkle Pop asset purchase agreement which provides that Sparkle Pop shall assume "amounts due with respect to open purchase orders for inventory ordered after the Petition Date and not delivered as of the Closing Date as set forth in a schedule to be provided to Purchaser prior to the Closing Date." Joel Weinshanker, the manager of Sparkle Pop, referred to this as "playing chicken with idiots" – referring to its vendors.

"My job became exponentially more difficult as it was impossible to maintain vendor relationships when vendors were not being paid. Mr. Weinshanker demanded that I leverage my relationships with vendors to coerce them into accepting his payment terms. Doing so would have ruined my reputation in the industry that I had spent 29 years building. Many of the vendors refused to accept these new terms and sought alternative partners."

"Sparkle Pop also sought to substantially cut its payroll expenses and directed that the Vice President of Purchasing and I identify employees for termination promptly upon closing of the sale transaction."

"On May 10, 2025, I received a call from Mr. Weinshanker. He gave me a 24-hour ultimatum to "get on board" with his program and to use my relationships with vendors to coerce them into issuing costs rebates and extended payments terms, and that I identify additional sales staff to terminate upon closing of the sale transaction. He also stated that because I had not identified enough staff to fire, including terminating Joe Lunday, Director of Ecommerce Sales, and the Executive Director of Purchasing from the purchasing team, my salary would be immediately reduced by 25%. This contradicted Mr. Weinshanker's promise that my salary would not be reduced.

"That same day, I called Robert Gorin, the Debtors' Chief Restructuring Officer. He told me that I was under no obligation to stay with DCD and that I could "do whatever [I] want." He also asked that I call Alex Haesler of Raymond James. I spoke to Mr. Haesler that same day, who explained that because I was not an officer or director of DCD, and was an "at will" employee, I was free to speak to any potential employer. I inquired further if I could speak to companies who submitted bids for Debtors' assets at the Auction, using the example of Universal, and he reaffirmed that I was free to speak to any interested parties.

"On May 11, 2025, I again spoke to Mr. Weinshanker and told him I would not accept a lower salary. But I did not resign. On Friday May 16, 2025, Fran Callahan, the head of Human Resources, sent an email to me on behalf of Charles Parker, terminating my employment with DCD, effective May 17, 2025. Specifically, it stated in part, that "[a]s part of the sale of Diamond to Ad Populum, the new ownership team has made its decisions about which employee positions will be a part of the new company. Unfortunately, I have been notified that your position is not among those being carried forward. As a result, your employment with Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. will officially terminate effective May 17, 2025. I am sure this is hard news to receive, and I know the restructuring process has been difficult and uncertain. Please know, this staffing decision is not a reflection of your performance or your contributions. These decisions have been made to reflect the structure and needs of its plans for the new organization going forward."

"That day I was one of dozens of employees terminated as part of a mass-layoff. These mass terminations must have substantially reduced Sparkle Pop's payroll expenses. The allegations in the Complaint and supporting declarations that I "abruptly resigned" are patently false. I was terminated after refusing to accept a 25% pay cut and refusing to use my relationships with vendors to force them to accept Mr. Weishanker's terms. After I was fired, I called Bruce Ogilvie, Executive Chairman of AENT, and explained that I had been terminated from DCD and the situation surrounding my termination. When I was fired from DCD, I did not take any trade secrets or confidential information with me. Importantly, Defendants have not alleged that I took any specific trade secrets or confidential information when I was terminated from DCD."

And that's on oath. More to come. But you can use these Diamond, AENT, and Ad Populum tags to keep up with the latest on Bleeding Cool. Here's a timeline if you want to catch up…