My recent report on the end of the traditional Archie Digest has attracted a lot of attention and made me wonder… what are you watching on American newsstands? I had been on vacation in Maine for the past 10 days, so I had the opportunity to check out my local supermarket (Hannaford), Target and, easily, Walmart.
I was interested in checking out the checkout, because of my own speculation about whether or not Digest-sized magazines are on sale anymore. It seemed that tours were organized in the old days when newsstands got us info. In fact, someone else’s work went out and checked their newsstands to see if things were on sale. I’ve been following in a long tradition.
But first, another interesting discovery I made. I am mostly ignorant of the current newsstand magazine distribution and asked to find out if anyone knows anything about it. I contacted Joe Berger, a magazine marketing consultant who has a newsletter on magazine distribution! And it has some cartoon content. I reached out to Mr. Berger about Archie’s situation, and although he didn’t know that, he gave me some insight into some other aspects of the mass market rack. His newsletter is called “If there’s a magazine, it’s in Aisle 5B,” and once the title grabs you the way it grabs me, you’ve already subscribed.
And now on my journey. I apologise for some quality in the photos, but I didn’t have much time to put things together as those who buy pork chops and kew rigs thought it was a bit strange that someone was taking pictures of the check-out aisle.
Hannafords, Damariscotta
I love Hannaford! I got local corn and it’s so fresh and amazing! However, in the case of magazines, it generally clearly shows the reduction of printed material. As a child on vacation in Maine, I peruse shows and racks of giant magazines these days, lamenting Mr. Paperback, and got comic and wrestling magazines. Neither was found in the 2025 version of Hannafords.
Main News Stand 2025-35 of 2
Check-out magazine racks were strictly magazine sized and most were burbazin and people. There are no digest size racks anywhere.
I found this beauty in the wild!
In fact, there was a magazine rack/book rack on the Aisle 11, and some specialized readings included.
We also looked at this small section, featuring a perennial classic farmer yearbook and a small selection of shortly underdeserved mass market paperbacks. Ah, the world’s disappearing media.
Given your interest in firearms, it must be noted that during your stay in Maine, there have been several messages that warn people that they shouldn’t take their guns to town.
I found a crazy magazine in Hannaford’s checkout pocket – sorry for the blurry photos, but there was a man standing nearby and it was strange to take a picture of the checkout aisle.
Additional information: TJ Maxx, Rockland
I went out to TJ Maxx in Rockland. The weather is very good, and the main activity for many people in Maine is moving around looking at people’s lawns. I’ve never been picked up this TJ Maxx, so I love this TJ Maxx and I’ve got some gems and some other Halloween accessories. Near the checkout, I found this kids’ book display: almost all the graphic novels.
Target, Augusta
Target was said to have phased out many of the magazines, but this was certainly true here. Only magazine-sized pockets, most of them were in checkout, which seemed barely used. I’ve been to this target dozens of times.
This passage was especially abandoned.
The book section included many graphic novels aimed at children. It’s not even like a graphic novel, like “middle grade.” TMNT: The final Ronin gets caught up in the fantasy section. But, ominously, there are no comics except for the One Piece Puzzle book. As one of our commenters pointed out, comics may be in the process of being abolished from the mass market, as all attention is paid to obscene material and there is a general shift from reading and challenging material. In Augusta, Maine, this is definitely the case, as we’ve seen a huge rack of manga in the past. Another reason to boycott a target. .
As an out-out-out arvinate, I was shocked to see what’s happening in the small Golden Book, as it is about the cast of friends in the Funko version.
But some eternal truths were also dealt with:
Walmart, Augusta
We made a short stop at Walmart, but I couldn’t check the book/magazine section behind, but at the checkout stand I finally found a digest size rack!!! Ubiquitous Farmers Almanac, Prevention, Puzzle Books, and a few of them carrying bingo! Archie Comic Digest!
I bought this on a whim! More details are below.
I didn’t see the book section at Walmart, but I looked at the area near the checkout where I sell sports cards. This is the area where DC’s experiments in Walmart Comics were once prophesied to destroy the market directly. It remains a messy mess.
If this lightning tour of offering a single local mass market newsstand proved something to me, it really means there’s nothing like a mass market newsstand. It would be hard to try and sell puzzle books and more than Bookazines that have been specially filmed about Pokemon and Ozzy Ossbourne. That said, I think there might be an audience in Dog Man and Nate-type comic magazines, but there wasn’t much material to aim for the kids at first. I think the idea of checkout aisle rewards for kids went down the path of the Rotary phone.
My research also proved that the check-out passages are not subtle.
Do cute cats deserve their special problems? absolutely.
As for the Archie Halloween Special Digest, I bought it as mentioned before, but I only get a sticker shock with the $9.99 price tag. No, I don’t usually buy comics, so I forget how expensive they are.
I think fretting about size is exaggerated. Archie Digests of Yore was actually smaller than Disney Adventure, or, if I recall correctly, the comic was a digest of my youth. The new format is a little less than the preventive size and is just a few inches larger than the old format, but the current digest pocket is more convenient.
Also, the inside of this digest is almost all manga. We were talking about the puzzles on a puzzle page that was about only a few Archie themed. I can’t talk about the quality of Archie content, but it was a pleasure to turn the page and see even old familiar names and past collaborators in the credits, but I hope that the reviewed Riverdale will reach it.
If there’s something tragic about Arhcie’s ongoing digest strategy, that’s what it means there are many of them. A few seasonal collections instead of the regular flow of reprints.
As a New Yorker, I am usually isolated from Walmart, Costcos and Kroger, the daily lives of suburban and rural Americans. Therefore, take all of the above with salt grains. The main is certainly a quirky market of its own. Perhaps I would reach out to the highly knowledgeable Joe Berger more about the state of the newsstand, but from my short tour it doesn’t seem particularly hostile to the comic, but it generally doesn’t seem to be that robust.
Finally, how was your rest of my vacation?
It’s absolutely beautiful, thank you for asking.
Like this:
Like loading…
