Yep, yep, yep
You read that right: we’ve lowered our prices. Starting with the August pre-orders, you’ll see reduced preo prices across the board. But where you will feel it the most: All Omnis and Big Books cover-priced 100$ and more are now effectively Big Book Deals.
YES, ALL OF THEM.
(Your buddy Wally the Wallet is quietly weeping tears of joy... I hear it...! You, too???)
But Why Only Pre-Orders?
Great question!
And yes, we’re working on adjusting in-stock prices next. Actually, a few hundred Omnis and Absolute Editions have already been price-sliced. 100$-books are under 80€, 125$ books 94.99€ and so on. It will take a little longer until all our inventory has been processed. But they will continue to drop with every restock.
This is not a sale. It’s a permanent change. Because the weaker dollar makes it possible, at least for now.
Will Prices Stay This Low Forever? In today's world economy (incl politics) anything is possible. On a daily basis. So it's hard to guarantee anything beyond "for the time being". Still, despite my Eastern European realism (read: pessimism), I’m choosing to be optimistic.
Because it's not the dollar alone.
Behind the scenes, Team Walt has been hustling. We’ve improved packing speed (maybe you’ve noticed faster fulfilment?) and our damages rate has also improved. We’ve also secured better shipping deals. In short: we’re in a good place, and that means you benefit.
When we went through a rough phase in 2022 and had to increase prices, most customers were understanding and stayed with us. And now they, and everybody new (and everybody else haha), get something back. This is how we like to do things: Good for us, good for you, good for all those hundreds of thousands of beautiful comics we are hosting, and: always attentive of good ol' Wally!
Getting Older
You know that weird feeling when it hits you: your parents — and even your grandparents — must’ve been just as young and cool as you are right now, at some point in the past...?! REALLY???
Well… no. You are obviously much cooler. But where am I going with this?
Walt’s turns 5 this year. So chief-emotional-marketer Gloriana whipped up a touchy-feely Instagram carousel... And what do you know, it kinda went viral (400 likes are not really viral, but ok)! Proof that nostalgia is underrated and that real humans are still cooler than bots.
But as much as we love a walk down memory lane, I still think the cool phase is still ahead of us. Because... look:
I think this one is going to be special. And interest has really picked up. Like, really. So if you’re thinking about coming, don’t wait too long:
Free tickets are almost gone (same for the sketching tickets).
And just in case anyone missed the memo: All “paid” tickets are just vouchers: you can use them on the day of the event.
We introduced them so that we can properly plan. We do need to know how many people actually show up (for our amazing artists! for our food coordinator! for "how many toilets do we need" and so on...). We need to manage the valuable hours for our invited creators, so that they have time for some 1:1 magic with you.
And yes, each signing or sketching ticket includes free entry, so if free tickets are gone, that’s your way in!
And is there still time for a surprise or two? Yes, there is... (though it's not depending on us at this point).
So, Pre-Orders...
... are done and ready! PRH dropped their catalog a bit later this month, so we had to serve the cake in slices, so to speak. But now it's all baked and ready.
With nearly 400 titles, we took our time to put together what we genuinely believe is the most cohesive and curated pre-order program in Europe. Bragging? You know me. Deserved? You decide!
The best way to navigate this monster month is by browsing through our pre-orders overview. We have created collections for your favourite formats and genres and even a curated "Team Walt Favs".
And Manga folks: we did not forget you. We've just upped our Manga Deals from just a few to quite a lot. Just go have a look.
Singles People, unfortunately you still have to wait a little — Manage Comics has not updated their catalog, yet.
And I also have to mention the newest Walt's Exclusive: We managed to secure a beautiful (and in its time very controversial!) exclusive variant for the newly expanded Wally Wood Artist Edition! Wallance Wood is widely known for his Science Fiction work (though I have soft spot for his romance works) and is generally regarded as one of the greatest US cartoonists, who ever lived. Also, his name is Wally!!! So naturally a Walt's fav.
Alright, then. I (don’t really, but have to pretend I) hate to end on another “coming up”, but we’re in the final stretch of producing the next issue of our "A Comic Shop Fanzine" magazine! The magazine that is ONLY EVER available in printed form and will NEVER go digital!!
Unlike its cousin "Beyond the Panels", which has just dropped a few fantastic overviews on the Eisner Award nominees, so just in case you need inspiration or want to read some fine comics journalism, head over here.
Also: we unearthed a box of the first edition of the printed Fanzine in the warehouse, so if you missed it the first time, you’ll be able to grab a copy at the WCS5Y event, along with merch and other cool stuff.
Anyway: have a good day, and take care of your loved ones.
(Preferably by gifting them comics.)
Cheers,
Walt
