What is the CBIA?
Originally created in December of 1997 as the COMIC RETAILERS
FORUM, a support forum for Direct Market Comic Shop Retailers,
the COMIC BOOK INDUSTRY ALLIANCE grew
out of a very humble beginning. Realizing that there was a lot
I had yet to learn about the industry, I also felt that I had
acquired a lot of knowledge that could help others to avoid
some of the mis-steps I had made along the way.
Having tired of the discourtesy of some venues and having
to wade through hundreds of postings to find one or two relevant
posts in others, it became evident that the resource I was looking
for didn't yet exist and after a few weeks of hunting for a
host, I discovered Delphi and thus was born the Comic Retailers
Forum.
"At
the CBIA, I regularly experience more peer to peer interaction
than anywhere else. In many ways it's like a trade show,
without the air fares and hotel bills, 365 days a year.
At times collegial, occasionally cantankerous and always
informative.
Rory
D. Root - Retailer: Comic Relief - The Comic Bookstore
The CBIA, the grand-daddy of Comic related forums on Delphi
quickly made it's mark, attracting award winning comic retailers,
creators and publishers from all over the globe. However my
original goal, advocacy for and betterment of Direct Market
Comics Retailers remains. Working side by side, or in most cases
modem by modem, with the brilliant members of the CRF and CBIA
has led me to realize that no facet, retail, creation/publishing,
distribution... can effectively grow, without a healthy partnership
with all of the others.
It soon became apparent that there was only so much that retailers
could accomplish without the cooperation of the rest of the
industry so the CRF expanded it's focus, becoming the COMIC
BOOK INDUSTRY ALLIANCE, open to Professionals
from all aspects of the Comic Industry. Since it's inception
the CBIA Forum has generated 51,000
hits to it's home page, registered over 500 members and recieved
over 100,000 posts on it's message board.
"The
CBIA is the single best resource when it comes to understanding
the marketplace and promoting my work to dedicated retailers.
I'd hate to be without it.
Sean McKeever - Creator: The Waiting Place, Sentinel,
Mary Jane
The industry is a vehicle with our love for comics as the
engine and creators, publishers, retailers and distributors
the wheels. Each individual group is important but individually
they aren't going anywhere, fast. However the more that we work
in unison, the quicker we all arrive at our desired destination.
If you agree with me that there is more that can be done to
improve the health of the comic industry, please join us here
in the COMIC BOOK INDUSTRY ALLIANCE. Remember if you're not
part of the solution, you are part of the problem!
"Through
open communicationon the CBIA, retailers have made their
voices heard and actually seen concrete changes brought
about in the industry.
Jeremy Mueller - Retailer: Gamers Solution
