Comic distributor Diamond UK to be sold to Diamond Distributors UK

As the US comic industry continues to collapse as Marvel and DC struggle to find an audience for their current crop of titles, supporting companies have been hammered. None more so than Diamond Comic Distributors UK, who are part of a chapter 11 bankruptcy claim in the US by Diamond Comic Distributors which was filed on January 14th. 

The company was one of the main distributors of US comics to stores across numerous territories, with their toy arm dealing with some Japanese properties such as Godzilla, and Japanese originated fare such as Power Rangers and Transformers. The loss of Diamond caused severe supply chain issues for comic stores and further accelerated decline in the market.

Chapter 11 allows businesses to restructure and maintain their assets for a period of time, as such it appears that the current management of Diamond comic Distributors UK will (subject to US court approval) be taken over by a new company called Diamond Distributors UK Ltd which was formed on 13th June this year. The new company will have 5 directors, none of whom have any other directorships, and no corporate interest from Comic Exporters Inc.

Whether or not this new entity will re-establish links with Penguin Random House, who sub-distributed for IDW, Dark Horse, Marvel and BOOM! Studios is unclear, but for now the idea appears to be a fresh start under a new banner, hopefully restoring some stability to a volatile market.

For a more fulsome view of how this all came to pass, you can read the article on Anime News Network which charts the various take over bids since January.

With thanks to Ollie Barder for the heads up. Follow him on X here.