Legendary Seattle comics shop in crisis

This is a big weekend for comic book fans. Saturday is Free Comic Book Day.

It started 15 years ago as a way to breathe some life into your local comic book store, but it may not be enough to save a legendary Seattle shop.

Perry Plush started Zanadu Comics 41 years ago in downtown Seattle, a place where fans could spend minutes, or hours searching for their favorite titles and characters.



“This has really been a niche business,” said Plush. “There’s no real manual for it. But comics are something you can share with people, you can go to another world, and the characters are so interesting.”

But readership is on the decline. And many who are reading are turning to digital comics.

Superheroes may be soaring on the silver screen, but Plush says that doesn’t translate to customers coming through his doors.

“We see people come in and they kind of experiment with it. But the times now, people don’t invest longtime into something.”

The customers he has are loyal, but he needs that base to grow. With increasing rents, and a potential relocation from Zanadu’s current home, the long-time comic shop could close.

A Go-Fund me page is under way to keep the doors open.

And on Saturday, Plush knows he’ll see plenty of people coming in for Free Comic Book Day, and he's hoping maybe he can create a few more converts.