Publishers hit by paper shortages as some print runs are halted

The shipping crisis, Brexit and the lockdown have all made logistics a nightmare for publishers. It’s much harder getting physical products to shops and to people.

Now there’s also a paper shortage to contend with.

ICv2 reports that Image Comics is so worried about it that they’re stopping second printings of all their titles. This ban will last for the foreseeable future.

As a result, stores have to think carefully about how many copies of any Image Comics titles they order. They’ve left money on the table if they order too few, and it is expensive to order too many.

Alex Cox, Image’s Director of Specialty Sales, emailed retailers earlier this week to explain the supply chain challenges, noting;

… at Image we’re proactively streamlining our releases to reflect these circumstances.”

Please keep this in mind as you order: there will be limited stock available for re-orders, and we will not be reprinting anything that sells through at the distributor level”

We are also adjusting the schedule of upcoming titles over the next few weeks to reflect a more responsible usage of raw material availability. This week is a lighter offering than what you might have expected. And these printings will be the only printings.

Earlier this month, Kickstarter also warned about supply chain disruptions. In an article, they noted how wide the problems are;

First, know that you’re not alone. These issues are being experienced by creators of every kind, in every industry, in every part of the world. Know also that many of your backers will by now be familiar with these complications. Many already realize that slower than usual delivery times are to be expected, and that longer timetables are not necessarily due to poor planning but to factors beyond anyone’s control.

Steve Jackson Games called the challenges An Extinction Level Event. In August, they said;

As an example of how freight is impacting games, our Car Wars Sixth Edition project required five containers (all on the water, and slowly making their way to our primary warehouse) that each cost over 3x more than they would have if the game had shipped in 2020. As many of you know, 2020 was the planned shipdate . . . and then a global pandemic decided to enter the picture and completely disrupt our plan and the manufacturing schedule.