Pull List, a tool offered to comic book shops all over the country, will be retired by Amazon subsidiary Comixology in March of next year, according to an email sent today to subscribers. Launched in 2007, Comixology is a web-based platform where publishers can sell digital versions of their monthly comic issues or collections. In 2008, Comixology launched Pull List and Retailer Tools, a subscription service that allowed buyers to select the books set aside for them at their local comic shops when they drop on Wednesdays. Many comic shops offer incentives for customers who set up pulls as it helps them know how many books to order week-to-week.
Prior to the availability of this service, many comic shops kept their own pull lists, which can be a time-consuming task for shopkeepers. Lists can be long and out of date, occasionally leaving comic shops with boxes of un-picked up comics that impact sales. In the decade since the service became available, over 600 shops have subscribed to Comixology’s retail services, which only cost shops around $50 per month. These tools also provide a comic shop locator to customers looking to find new stores.
The Pull List tool was seen as a peace offering as more and more comic sales moved from physical to digital, but in 2011, Comixology provided physical retailers a system to build a digital storefront that would give them a percentage of sales of digital comics. According to the email sent to subscribers today, the Digital Storefront program will continue.
Also according to the email, “If you use pulllist.comixology.com to manage your pull list with a retailer, please contact your retailer about how to manage your in-store pull list going forward. Keep in mind that your retailer was just informed of the services ending and may need a little time to figure out a new way to pull your in-store subscriptions.”
It remains to be seen how retailers will cope with the loss of a service many have relied on to keep ordering profitable in an era where publishers are also putting pressure on shops to increase stock purchasing.