Right, OKComicsMan will be returning from holiday soon and i thought we could give him something fun to return to. So, its "use you imagination" time. Just complete the following sentence:
The best thing about OK Comics is .. the fact that I have hidden Beano, Dandy and Whizzer & Chips issues throughout the store and no-one seems to have noticed.
the best thing about my last visit there is two days ago i bought the first 'Sleeper' tpb and only this morning did i discover it was signed by Sean Phillips!
"you don't feel like you're being watched over by a kevin smith style steve-dave :)"
Hahahahaha. I once had a letter published in Comics International where I reffered to the manager of a shop belonging to a certain Northern Chain of comic shops as "even looking like comic book guy from the simpsons"... that shop sent me a £20 voucher and I got e-mails of praise hahaha
...when OKComicsman is on holiday and OKOliver dresses as Batgirl and gets out the secret punchbag with Joe Quesada's face painted on it , 20p a go it is. And the way he hangs out the shop doorway yelling; "Comics ARE just for kids! Suck it up! And David Jason is an extremley limited actor of interest only to people who drink cocoa before bed! And Yorkshire is Satan's County too!" That OKOliver, he so bad, he's nasty.
..I can ask OKComicsman if Civil War is any good time and time again and he just gets a porcelain glaze over his eyes, runs through his spiel and doesn't punch me.
...they have sales with things I want in them, so I don't have to buy things I don't want just because it's cheap. (You've all done it.)
...at least one member of staff has read American Flagg! and Ronin.
the best thing about ok comics is: 1) i met alot of nice people through this forum (AAAARH) 2) i get to talk about stuff that riles me about comics, of which my girlfriend has no frame of reference 3) Oliver is some sort brainic style super computer totally geared on useful comic info (infact I now call him THE OLICLE). 4) the usual crap, friendly staff, you get comic bags, no stickers on covers, they dont sell wrestling shite 5) when i have stessful day at work and i can just go on a quick scive to ok comics just around the corner, talk about comics, make some bad jokes. Its like cheers but with less booze and Jared insted of Ted Danson.
The fact that you always feel welcome and that one of the employee's suggested i bought criminal #1 today (Sorry not shopped there long so not so cool with names) Twas a cracking read.
Best thing? I've probably met about a dozen different people through OK Comics, and everyone has been really cool. I'm trying to think of anywhere else this could be true.
Can I just say that one of the good things about OK is that you don't have to spend time trying to attract the attention of vacuously obnoxious shop assistants who don't know a thing about comics. Like the ones that you find in a, Frankly Poor comics shop in Leeds.
Forbidden Planet was a great place to work. I've nothing but good memories of the place. Glad to hear that so many people like OK Comics because the don't hate it as much as somewhere else. "The reason I like getting colds because it's not as bad as TB".
I think the best thing about OK Comics is the people. The staff, customers, neighbours, delivery guys, suppliers, sales reps. I can honestly think of only a handful of people who I don't get along with. All my best friends I met through working here or at Forbidden Planet.
I honestly don't think of Forbidden Planet, or Travelling Man as competition. Sure they're both shops that sell the same stock as OK Comics, but I have think of retail in broader terms than that. A comic is a luxury item, like a CD, Book or wii. And all are purchased with people's disposable income after they've paid the bills and bought groceries. We are competing with Game, HMV and Borders (the big entertainment shops local to OK) more than we are with comic shops across town. Also, if we get too engrosed or obsessed with what the two big comic shops in town are doing we may loose sight of what we're trying to acheive here.
"SOME people purchase comics BEFORE they pay the bills and buy groceries. SOME people would see their one year old child tap dancing for pennies in the street in order to pay their bills and buy groceries, after spending all their income on comics."
She just never comes straight out and says what she means. I think she was joking anyway.
That holiday has certainly widened OKComicsman's vision. It's not just other comic shops, it's the entire retail industry he's competing with now. Do you think there is an internal film running through OKComicsman's head of that final scene from Fight Club where all the financial institutions fall to the ground;except in OKComicsman's version they are Borders, HMV etc.?
Oh just think of the day when you can go into OK (the WalMart of the comic world) and do your weekly grocery shop and buy your comics at the same time. The joys of trying to steer the trolly around the graphic novel and baked bean displays. The fresh produce with fruit, veg and this weeks comics. The hot food department with cooked chickens and this weeks Civil War crossovers. The delicatessen with strange cheeses and European graphic novels. The grannies stood in the middle of the aisles talking about Jim Lee's latest missed deadline. And of course the helpful staff that will bag everything for you and carry it all out to the car......
Stick to selling comics. It makes life a helluva lot easier for us customers.
I think the best thing about OK Comics is the ability to go in and browse at your leisure, without being button-holed. And when you do need help, staff & Customers always have an idea of what you might like.
I recently bought Winter Soldier: Winter Kills - which is different from my usual tastes.
(Just realised I havent posted in this thread yet!)
I don't mind Olicle. The best thing about working at OK Comics is how much I have learned about the business side of what used to be just a hobby for me.
I'll second that. I love trying to pre-empt peoples buying habits, guessing months in advance how well things are going to sell. I also like people, customers and staff, recommending things I wouldn't normally bother with.
I just finished the last of my Christmas beers from Cropton Brewery last night, I got a selection box from my special lady. I had the Old Goat Strng Ale, 8% alcohol, 100% awesome. http://www.croptonbrewery.com
I got 13 bottles of Moosehead (Canadian) for Christmas and have only had 3. I want one now... *drools* The Belgian beer Palm is nice too. I highly recommend that one. Both are available from Beer Ritz in Headingley :)
You know I'd forgotten all about Beer Ritz. Unnecessarily expensive though, but an excellent selection all the same. Or at least it used to be. There's a Beer Ritz in York and their selection tends towards the European brews (last time I was in the York branch they had no Wychwood beers at all). It's nice to see more and more indie breweries opening up in the area.
haha i like this thread - best thing about ok comics is i spent 3 years bitching about a rubbish boyfriend to jared and then found a good one on the second floor of the very same shop! i got comics and a fella - genius marketing ploy jm, even walmart cant top that.
i also like that i can send the people i support with learning disabilities in and they bring me back presents.
i enjoy meeting people through the forum and then having them carry my heavy shopping onto buses when its busy (cheers digby)
i like being able to borrow graphic novels to help broaden my horizons without worrying if i can afford it.
i love the fact that all the staff have such vast knowledge and between them they can answer any question (or at least google it)
i like ok because it has a forum on which we can talk about liking it so much.
and i also like ok because it gives me an excuse to spend days baking buns every may (FCBD) and for other exciting events.
and finally because they have a fancy sofa, habitat style furnishings and a coffee pot. and it doesnt smell of wee
