Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Comics, entertainment, st louis, star clipper

You Can Buy Star Clipper's Sign As The 27 Year Old Comic Store Closes – But You'll Have To Take It Down Yourself

Published Thu, 22 Jan 2015 22:00:19 -0600

Customers of Star Clipper, the Eisner-winning comic store in business in St Louis for twenty-seven years and run by couple Ben and AJ, received the following sad letter last week..

Dear Friends of Star Clipper,

It is with great regret Ben and I must inform you that after more than a quarter century serving St. Louis, Star Clipper is closing its doors.

The personal and professional experience of managing Star Clipper has been the most important of our lives. We were lucky to inherit the legacy from wise people ahead of their time, grow with the medium, and love the job. But the time has come to bring Star Clipper to a natural conclusion.

Making the decision to close after our 17-year tenure was very difficult. We will miss the connection to St. Louis' incredible fan community, talented creative professionals and fellow Loop businesses. We have been privileged to work with staff who set the standard for professionalism. Our suppliers and partners have our gratitude for all their support over the years.

Star Clipper gave us a unique opportunity to innovate and explore. We hope you have enjoyed being a part of it!

Now for some practical considerations:

Starting Saturday, January 17, 2015 we will begin liquidating our inventory with a discount of 25% off everything storewide. We will be happy to accept reasonable offers for our fixtures and other equipment as well. Preordered items will not be discounted.

We will continue to receive new comics and graphic novels through the month of January. Our subscription customers will receive a separate message about arrangements being made on their behalf.

Our hours of operation are changing. As of this writing we will be open seven days a week from 10 AM to 8 PM.

Gift certificates and store credit will be honored through February 10, 2015. The excellent Fantasy Books, Inc. chain, which offers three metro area locations, will honor valid Star Clipper gift certificates beginning February 10, 2015. We will no longer be purchasing used Graphic Novels.

Thank you for everything, St. Louis! See you in the funny papers.

Sincerely Yours,

A.J., Ben, and the Staff of Star Clipper

Local paper, the Riverfront Times asked more,

"It became clear that the store couldn't support both of us at the same time," A.J. offers. "I began to dip my toe into other waters last winter." She now works full-time at Stray Rescue while Ben helms Star Clipper's day-to-day operation, although he still has time to volunteer at Tenth Life Cat Rescue. Not coincidentally, the couple have fostered a staggering number of cats over the years.

"We moved in and had huge growth until the third quarter of 2007," says Ben. "The market collapsed in 2008. One-third of our customers aren't comic fans, they're walk-ins, the tourists who come to the Loop. Those numbers decreased in 2008. In 2012 everything started coming back. 2014 was our biggest year ever, but our margins are lower because of what we're carrying and where we're getting it."

When it comes to comic books, the playing field is level. Prices for retailers are standard, so every shop no matter how big or small pays the same for its books. Star Clipper invested heavily in non-comic merchandise (the aforementioned Doctor Who items and plush creatures, for example). Those products brought in non-comic customers, but they also hurt the shop in the long run when those items didn't sell.

"Getting out of our debt from 2008 and back to normal has been difficult," Ben bluntly states. "It's left us more susceptible to outside influences that hurt business. Bad weather, for example, keeps the walk-ins out."

This winter has been mild compared to last year's deep chill, but the end of the year found the Trujillos seriously contemplating Star Clipper's future.

"You get to the end of the year and you reflect on the past and start to look at what the new year will be like," A.J. offers.

There is a long silence that Ben eventually fills.

"We looked back and saw we didn't hit our goals."

The mourning has been considerable. A well liked store, both from its customers, amongst their peers and in the industry as a whole.

And when they say liquidising everything they mean it. You can buy their sign for $750, or they will donate to a museum. Here's their Walking Dead commercial from a couple of years ago…

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znOFXNjOJZ8[/youtube]

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