Comic-Con International, the pop culture behemoth that has attracted comic book fans to San Diego for 41 years, has been struggling under its own weight. Because of size limitations of the city’s convention center, attendance was capped a few years ago at 125,000. But the grand spectacle has spilled into the city’s streets. Hotels have increased their rates, and organizers have threatened to move the show.
Two thousand miles away, New York Comic Con is content to be smaller and leaner.
The New York show, which opened Thursday night at the Jacob K. Javits Center in Manhattan, bounced around the calendar for a couple of years before finding a home in October last year, when 96,000 fans made the trek to New York to attend.
Organizers expect attendance at the show, now in its sixth year, to surpass 100,000 this year. And while its rival in San Diego grapples with growing pains, New York Comic Con is finding its footing.
“San Diego was the arena rock show; New York is the acoustic show,” said Jeremy Corray, creative director at World Events Productions, a television distribution company that is making its first visit to New York Comic Con to promote “Voltron: The Defender of the Universe,” an animated series from the 1980s. “San Diego has evolved into entertainment con. New York is a little more focused and manageable.”
That focus has helped New York Comic Con establish its position as the premier comic book convention on the East Coast, organizers say.
“We are very careful about this,” said Lance Fensterman, show manager for New York Comic Con, which is organized by ReedPOP, an offshoot of Reed Exhibitions. “We want our show to be reflective of New York City. We have a lot of reverence for San Diego, but we are a different animal.”
To help cement its identity, Mr. Fensterman said, organizers are seeking to establish ties to New York’s business community, including public relations firms, publishers and deal makers. To build that connection, ReedPOP organized White Space, a pop culture summit meeting for entrepreneurs scheduled for Thursday night, calling it “a mind-inspiring think tank to spur unexpected connections between innovators of TV, film, comics, games, technology and advertising.”
And yet, Hollywood has come calling. Lucasfilm is attending to promote its new movie, “Red Tails,” an action movie inspired by the Tuskegee Airmen. And Warner Brothers TV will be on hand, as will Adult Swim and Marvel Entertainment, which will be revealing new film of its much-anticipated summer blockbuster, “The Avengers.”
Marvel is planning to assemble cast members of “The Avengers” for a panel and is promoting an appearance by Stan Lee, the former publisher of Marvel Comics and the co-creator of many of Marvel’s well-known characters, including Spider-Man and Iron Man. Mike Pasciullo, senior vice president of brand planning and communications at Marvel, said the company appreciated the more intimate feel that New York Comic Con offered.
“For a company like Marvel, the fans are very important,” he said. “Since the early days of Stan Lee, Marvel has always been about community. We want to make sure it stays that way. It’s part of the DNA of Marvel.”
Other companies feel the New York connection as well. Hasbro will attend the show for the first time this year, bringing some New York-themed exclusives. But more important, it’s a chance for the company’s marketers and designers to connect with consumers, John Frascotti, Hasbro’s chief marketing officer, said.
“Today’s marketing is a two-way street,” he said. “As a company, you have to really listen closely to your fans.”
And those fans are very important to the exhibitors that attend New York Comic Con. Capcom Entertainment, a video game publisher, is making a return visit to the convention because of the enthusiasm shown by fans last year. Francis Mao, senior director of creative services and events at Capcom, said the company increased its budget for the show by 30 percent this year, adding more game demonstrations, panels and exclusive products for sale.
“Our store is not making a profit, but we are able to get the fans all these exclusive things,” Mr. Mao said. “It’s all seen as an investment, and it pays off.”
That payoff spreads to all the exhibitors, and comes back to ReedPOP. Mr. Fensterman would not disclose the company’s costs for the show, but said they were in the “double-digit seven figures.”
As long as ReedPOP can maintain a balance between growth and identity, exhibitors and fans will keep coming back.
“We can take a little bit deeper dive here in New York,” said Peter Armstrong, director of product development at THQ, a video game publisher. “You do feel like you’re able to spend more time talking to people, and to me that’s cooler.”
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