The Lydia "Cookie" R. Guerrero Interview

The late Don Ramon Roces, patriarch of the Philippine "komiks" publishing monopoly, had two daughters: Carmen Roces Davila and Elena Roces Guerrero. Later, Don Ramon divided his comics publishing empire between his two daughters. Dona Elena got the Graphic Arts Services, Inc. (GASI) group while Carmen inherited the Atlas Publishing Corporation group. Dona Elena had three children: Xavier (Wahoo), Lydia (Cookie), and Alfredo (Bumbo).

Lydia "Cookie" Guerrero, grandaughter of Don Ramon, was fortunately interviewed on March 7, 2001 by Sassy Mae C. Sumulong. The full transcript of the interview is made available online by Sassy Mae. (VIDE: www.geocities.com/rocesphilscookietrans.htm).

It is a good and informative site with excellent profiles on some of the prestigious and colorful Roces family. The interviews, especially on Village Voice's Tony V. Roces, are quite insightful. As an aside, the Village Voice is a free paper circulated mainly at high-end residential communities in Makati, Alabang and San Juan. To this blogger's mind, the Village Voice was a proper strategic publishing response in this era of media demassification.

Anyway, Ms. Sumulong's interview with "Cookie" Guerrero reveal interesting things about the business of comics publishing in the country. For starters, "Cookie" Guerrero confirms the monopolistic practice of her family as follows:

"xxx So, all these things were divided between the three and so we are independent of each other although we'd, ah, monitor each other, you know, as to we're gonna raise prices, we kind of like raise prices together, we used to do that also with, when Atlas was still alive although Atlas is still alive but it was bought by National Bookstore, okay. So, when we had Atlas and, ah, Graphic, we practically monopolize the market, okay, so we would always coordinate, you know, with one another when it came to pricing and then, ah, of course also like cost of paper, you know, how much are you buying your paper, how much, you know, um, stuff like that, so that it becomes like one, you know, one is not better than the other although we were competitors which was very, very hairy because we never talk about business when we're...socializing with one another, I mean never talk about business. When we talk about business when we're, you know, in a meeting or, you know, the office situation but we never, never, never, never talk about business in social..." (Emphasis Mine)

The interview also gives us an idea of just how vast Don Ramon's empire was, and the millions of capital he possessed to ensure the continued operation of his comics empire. The interview also hints that with the coming of the new generation of the Roces clan in the present age of media demassification, they (the Davila and the Guerrero grandchildren),couldn't seem to duplicate Don Ramon's succees, that is, of publishing cheap newsprint type comics for the low-income reading market. And as you go further into the interview, it will be revealed that the grandchildren ("Cookie" included) assiduously follow a "conservative" publication policy of sticking to tradition. No wonder they find the publishing business "difficult".

"xxx My grandfather had a lot of different companies, I mean he had this two companies, he had, ah, a plywood industries, he had Permanent which is hollow blocks, I mean he went into a lot of different businesses, um, but the one that he is actually stayed with as in this, um, comics and um, movie magazines, you know. So, ah, when he thought well, it was time, ah, that side was given to my aunt and this half was given to us. So that was sold because well, they (The Davilas) didn't wanna stay in the publishing business, but, um, we still in the publishing business. Its not easy, you know, part of the reason it's difficult, it's because, um, aside from ah, television, and ah, well this cable TV, ah, you know, cost of printing and paper also gone up so high that, ah, it's very costly to have, you know, and ah, seeing that the consumer is not also able to buy expensive magazines you can't also sell it for, you know, expensive because who's going to buy, the.. so, you must realize that our market is C and D, you know, except for the women's magazines which is B and C, alright but the rest is C and D because these are, ah, publication that are for the masses and as you know there are more poor people than rich people in this country, so who's going to give them any reading material, are they gonna go and buy in a hundred peso magazine di ba no, so are you going to now, ah, you know, um, exclude them from reading, ah, you know, something, no, so, you know we do provide them with reading material. Its cheaper because its newsprint but as the years pass and there's so much competition between cable TV and TV, regular TV and computers and you know other forms of entertainment. xxx"

"...and you know, since may TV so let's say how you compete, that's a problem, you know so we're encountering a lot of modern day competition, you know, because you can only be so much to modernize your publication, for instance, print, I mean, how, di ba, you can make fancy, you know put fancy colors, put fancy designs and more attractive but they cost money, so how to produce? di ba hindi pwede. I wish we could, noh, pero that's not the way things are, things are you gonna be able to make ends meet, you know, so that you can still produce, something that is affordable, did you get the keyword--affordable, di ba, I mean especially students, you know, and even them to buy something that is not food, di ba. So it's been a struggle and I think one of the reasons that I'm still here is because we've been very conservative, we haven't, ah, launched into one project after the other and also I believe that I owe some kind of loyalty to my grandfather's memory, you know, and so, um, to our family has been, ah, known for this sort of thing.

Q: It's ah, like continuing a legacy...

A: Yeah, so whether it will continue on to the next generation I don't know, you know, my kids are more interested in other things and, so maybe it will stop with me, I don't know, you know. I hope not but you know with the current trend many will be let believe, ano, that, you know, print media is very limited na, first of all paper is you know getting more expensive because to produce paper, you know, you need trees, you need, so you have to have like a source and, ah, it's not going to be there forever although all these are plantations, noh, they are not cutting the forest down, they, they plant and they plant and you know although it's limited there might, ah, there might come a time that paper will be different, it won't be paper from the trees it be some artificial, other artificial, you know...who knows, you know but I choose to be more kind of optimistic."

(As of this writing, a paper-thin, flexible, foldable, polymer plastic-based product with micro circuitry inside is being developed. It hopes to replace LCD monitor screens in the future. The idea is that moving or static images can be electronically beamed down and appear on this polymer paper. For example, if you want to read the 2nd page of today's newspaper, just take out and unfold the one sheet polymer paper, connect with the satellite on the celfone via GPRS, and it will beam down instantly the 2nd page on your polymer paper. Moving on to the next page is done in the same manner. If you're tired of reading the other pages of that edition, you just turn off and wait for the next edition to be "beamed down" the following day on your polymer based paper. Will comics publishing and distribution be like this in the near future?)

The Atlas komiks publishing company was sold to National Bookstore in the late 1990s. GASI meanwhile was dissolved and divided between Cookie, Wahoo and Bumbo. Cookie relates the arrangement as follows:

"Q: So yours would be the Solid Gold.

A: Solid Gold and Woman's they are two, they are two different companies and then my brother is Sonic although he also, he also stop publishing and is now only a printer but my eldest brother (Wahoo) is a publisher and a printer so he had, ah, ah, Counterpoint and Kislap.

Q: So, ah, under Solid Gold will be different publications?

A: Yeah, we have the comics, the song hits and movie magazines. And woman's, ah, and the, and the woman's magazine, Chic.

Q: Um, so there's a separate Woman's...

A: Woman's and Chic are, are two different publications. You see (showing magazine cover samples), here's Hot Copy, here's Chic this one belongs to Solid Gold, Chic and Hot Copy, this is the movie magazine (referring to Hot Copy), this is women's magazine, Chic and then here's Woman's Home Companion, so, these (referring to Chic and Hot Copy) belong to Solid Gold, Woman's Home Companion and stand by itself, its a separate company."

It was further disclosed that the day to day publishing operations of GASI were not controlled by Dona Elena or by her three children. Rather, the same were overseen by a trusted right hand man--er, woman, in the person of the late Mrs. C.P. Paguio.

"Cookie" Guerrero also reveals that the Davila and Guerrero children (and grandchildren) were not inclined to do comics publication hinting that it was not their "forte". Cookie in particular, is more enamored with her Women's magazine than with comics. She relates how one of her sons briefly entered into comics publishing but later stopped altogether:

"Q: Your two sons, or they also have an inkling...

A: Ah, well, I don't know, my, my youngest son is studying in IS (International School) so his orientation is a bit different, in a sense that maybe they have, ah, higher goals and, ah, well my son is, my eldest is a litle bit more , um, probably interested in this business because he had his own publication also.

Q: Which is?

A: Infiniti. He had Infiniti and, ah, it was quite successful, in the beginning, but you know, you don't have the patience to stay with it then after a while like, um, ayaw na niya and so, on to something else, so, but he's the one that comes here and he's willing to help out but, ah, I prefer that he should do something on his own, you know, so that he can have, ah, parang feel more assured, self-assured, you know, rather than just hand down something, I would prefer that he would.

Q: What's the orientation of Infinit? Its a magazine?

A: Full of comics.

Q: Ah, comics.

A; Oo. It was a, you know, Streetfighter? Streetfighter? Kickfighter? Kickfighter ba yun?

Q: Streetfighter.

A: Well, yeah, he, he, based it on that and it was an instant success actually during that time, now that's on television and not only on television, the game, Streetfighter, Kickfighter, Kickfighter ba yun or Streetfighter?

Q: Yeah, the...I know a certain Streetfighter (laughs)

A: Oh, okay that one na back, that was a game, a video game, ah, he caught on to that particular ah, cartoon whatever, figures and made a comics based on those characters and it was highly interesting, you know, until it...like anything else, its out now.

Q: Its like Marvel and...

A: No. Marvel, no.

Q: ...like the Spiderman, more like the concept of that...

A: Yeah, action, action, action, ah, comics yeah, but that was, ah, you know, ah...so he's had that experience in publication, so he had his own company, and another thing, I didn't do anything with him that's his money so...it was, ah, it's a...experience for them, so they know it's not easy and, ah, some of us have, ah, you know, patience and, ah, I suppose the older you get the, the more you have, you know, patience in continuing something, you entirely believe in long term business, I don't, ah, really like this one shot deal...you know yung mga iba diyan, um, its difficult for me because um, I like something that's more consistent you know, so maybe you might not earn instant, ah, amount of money, large, but you have it coming in every time so well, that's one thing I stress with my kids or any younger...you want to establish a business, you have to look towards a long-term business. It might not get you what you want right away but at least there's something everyday, something every month and that was to me the most important thing, you know, I always say that, I always stress that and ah, I don't know if it's ah, actually (laughs) learned it but (laughs) I always tell them, if you want a business hindi na bale itong mga cyber cafe, kasi ganyan because sandali lang yan, kapag nagsawa na diyan iba na naman, so you know, of course you can make a killing but then after that you can take another big amount of money to start off something again. It comes out more expensive to do that."

Finally, she gives the following advice for start-up publishers wanting to enter the magazine or comics business:

"Well, you know, I've seen a lot of new magazines come and go and, um, I believe that if you wanna put up a magazine seriously, you have to have enough capital to back it up na I feel fortunate that this publication that I'm handling for example has been started off by my grandfather and has been handed down to us and I think that, um, simplifies a lot of things, so, ah, if you want to avoid appearing and disappearing, I think you have to study your economics really well because its not easy to break into the market, number one, mark the, easy to make the magazine because I think with the computers, ah, and you know the availability of, ah, little presses it's very easy to come out with a magazine, you know, but the nature of the business is not easy because, tsk, ah, in spite of it being a retail product you have to go through agents and sub-agents and, ah, collection is not easy, in other words it's a hard thing to do, you know, so if you don't have money set aside to support your magazine while you're waiting for collection, you're dead. So that's you know, that's what I'm saying because the market is open but you have to have enough to back you up you know, and the important thing is you have to be consistent. You have to have this staying power because the life of a magazine is, ah, advertising and before you can get the advertisers' confidence you have to be in the market long enough for them to know that you're not gonna disappear because I can say okey I'm going to give you a contract of 6 months, right, so you're actually putting out and after 3 months it closes so the advertiser loses confidence and, ah, if you're expecting to get an ad right away, that's, it's never..., you can't get one right away. Now what you see out there like when they have a first issue that's laden, tadtad with ads, a lot of those are exchange...or some of them are free you know, so it's hard to judge a magazine just by looking through it because you don't see the real picture, you know, I don't want to say this magazine, I don't want to name magazines but that's true, you know, so it's um, it's not an easy thing getting into publication, it might look easy but it's not an easy thing to get into it well, do your numbers correctly and ah, stay with it, that's all I can say you know, because I myself have been a victim of comin' out and, um, it difficult, you end up spending a lot of money but you know, you just have to try and the readers are fickle. It's like one day they like that then next day they don't, so you have to keep on giving them something that will make them continue buying, so it's hard. It's it, you know like they say, the toughest business, businesses that you could actually get into is publishing and export and garments, okey, publishing and garments and you guess what?

Q: You got both (chuckles).

A: (Laughs) Just like putcha, is there money in these goddamn businesses? It's like hard, I tell you."

Filipino Comics as a Medium of Communication: An Example

It is nice to know that there are still some people out there who look beyond Filipino comics publishing as not limited to mere commercial and juvenile entertainment. The following news article that appeared in the January 12, 2004 issue of the Manila Times newspaper entitled: "CAR health experts print Ganas comics" by Thomas F. Picana (Chief, Northern Luzon Bureau), reports that a non-government organization (NGO) called "Piecad" have engaged in comics publishing with a predominantly social objective: population control through proper reproductive health education. Full details are as follows:

"BAGUIO CITY--In the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) you will be surprised to chance upon a colorful comics publication called Ganas, or enjoyment in Ilocano.

However, its pages are rife with stories, not of titillating sexbombs but of curious reports of men getting pregnant, lusty potato farmers learning the hard facts about sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and a woman karatedo expert who always get bad dates. And the center spread features a primer about the different contraceptives.

"Ganas comics is our way to reach out to the youth about reproductive health," explained Marites Raposas, president of Partners in Information, Education, Communication and Advocacy for Development (Piecad).

"We named our line of comics as Ganas, or pleasure or enjoyment because we want to tell the youth and other readers that sex is not a bad thing (and) not to be guilty about all the time. You should know when and where to be careful (about it)," she said.

Piecad published two issues in Ilocano in November last year. Raposas said four more titles are to be printed in the next eight months. She said the comics will deal with the 10 aspects of reproductive health including STIs, reproductive tract cancers, male involvement in reproductive health for adolescents and the elderly, contraceptives, violence against women and post abortion counselling.

That Raposas and Franklin Cimatu wrote the articles in comic book form in Ilocano should not intimidate non-native speakers. The drawings by Hubert Cabanban are colorful and fun, so the readers would get the message.

'We don't want the gloom-and-doom style of conveying the message. We wanted it to be hip and funny," said Cimatu, information officer of Piecad.

"When I first attended my gender sensitivity training eight years ago, the government doctor showed horrible pictures of gonorrhea and other STIs," he said. "These make people think that sex is terribly bad. And yet the Cordillera, particularly Baguio, has one of the highest teenage pregnancy rates in the country. What does that mean? (It means) the Catholic Church and government officials cannot instill fear about sex in the youth. The best way is to tell them what to do and to make them take charge of their lives."

It has been said that the total output of Filipino comics is not confined to the commercial and entertainment-based kind as traditionally exemplified by the defunct Roces comics publishing monopoly, and the prevailing "globalized" Filipino comics currently circulating amongst the children and apathetic young adult elite of Metro Manila.

Even as this entry is being typed, there are unbeknowest to us all, circulating in the far flung rural provinces, printed Filipino comics similar to Ganas that are tinged with social, religious, educational, and even political themes. This small but quiet movement is testament to the fact that printed Filipino comics can be varied, mature, and respectable when used as a medium of communication for social development.

Unfortunately, few of these titles benefit from wide public exposure, creative development, and funding. Nor will one find samples of these in online comics museums or even comics/toy fan conventions. A pity considering their social if not historical, significance.

Distribution matters

You're naive if you think that everything revolves and stops at the creative process. Creating comics with terrific stories, fantastic art, glossy pages, and fancy computer coloring, does not by itself result in huge sales. You may have created the world's greatest comic but if these aren't properly (and fairly) displayed at the newstand racks, or worse, are displayed in areas catering to the wrong target market, no one will ever get to know, much less read, your magnum opus. Even with the canniest of marketing and advertising ploys your treasured comics masterpieces will eventually be returned UNSOLD by the dealer leaving you with the mistaken notion that the reading public (or your marketer) is to blame.

Making sure therefore, that copies are strategically and widely disseminated to a huge target audience, and of being certain that your copies are always prominently displayed in the racks to ensure brisk sales, is the function of distribution.

It may all sound so simple but it is a very difficult aspect of comics publishing especially for first-time and independent self-publishers with substantially little or no capital.

Once proficiency is attained however, this daunting commercial (and human) task becomes almost a skilled "artform" possessed by a lucky few.

Unlike the creative and controllable stage of comics production where relatively few and familiar players are involved, distribution always involves far too many dealers and strangers scattered all over a given geographical area (often citywide or nationwide). Small and independent self-publishers intending to widen their horizons should take this basic and daunting fact to heart. It takes a considerable amount of time, money and effort to transport those piles of comics to various dealers, and more of the same thing just, to ensure that those copies are always displayed and sold regularly.

No Virginia, not all magazine and comics dealers are saints either. Otherwise, they wouldn't be human. Being human, magazine and comics dealers are prone to moral fallibility just like everybody else especially in a highly competitive atmosphere. We lie. We cheat. We steal. Because of this moral fallibility a print publisher cannot afford to naively and wholeheartedly surrender his fate to the discretion of magazine, newstand, or comics dealers. In order for a comics publishing business to succeed, one must guard against all too real risk of human dishonesty.

And its not just moral fallibility, but economics should come into the picture as well. A single newstand dealer always has limited space to display all of his stock. If he has a large stock of printed publications (comics titles included) chances are, not all will be displayed. And chances are, if the selling or cover price of the comic title doesn't give the dealer a fair or reasonable share, he won't even bother displaying that title on his rack.

Joe Brancatelli, a business journalist hired by publisher Jim Warren in the 1970s to put out a series of articles examining the American comics scene, explains the importance of distribution in this regard:

"After a magazine is published, it is usually sent directly from the printer to a string of local "independent distributors" who have agreed to distribute te book under contract with a "national distributor". Since most local distributors have a geographic monopoly (developed gradually through the years and presently being contested in the court system), he not only receives almost ALL the magazines published, he gets all the comic books published by National, Marvel, Charlton, Gold Key, Harvey, Archie and Warren.

As you might suspect, neither he nor his string of retailers can adequately merchandise all the magazines AND all the comics. More often than not, many books get lost in the shuffle, never leave the distributors' warehouse or never make it from the retailers' bundle to his limited display space. Moreover since comic books offer both independent distributors and retailers an embarassingly poor profit when compared to more prestiguous books like TIME, PLAYBOY, ESQUIRE, COSMOPOLITAN or the others the four-color cheapies are most often left behind.

In 1974 when I was on a cross country assignment for the Gannett newspaper chain, I surveyed 50 independent distributors, and it was their consensus that only about one comic book in four printed actually reaches the retail shelves. Naturally, even if the comic book is the greatest thing since sliced bread reatively, the distribution snafus almost surely guarantee dreadful sales." (Emphasis Mine) (Source: "The Comic Books" by Joe Brancatelli, Vampirella No. 55, October, 1976 issue, Warren Publishing)

The Philippines' magazine and comics distribution system is not unlike that of the U.S. Both countries operate under a market system which, in essence means that everything has to work based on the law of supply and demand, money, and the basic human desire to better his own lot. This is both good and bad. Since the market system is the only system programmed to reward enterprising human endeavor while ignoring the indolent, one is impelled to protect and maintain a level playing field in the market by policing and throwing out the market's rotten apples. If this policing breaks down, inequality and a gradual deterioration of the market structure, and of human survival, would ensue.

The human factor in distribution is thus important. It needs to be constantly checked. For a business to succeed, one must guard against moral fallibilities. To stress, one may create a great looking comic that's a sure seller but if players in the distribution stage commit fraud or by honest inadvertence and mistake, omit to display the comic in his rack, the whole operation will be affected.

Neal Adams, superstar comics artist of the 1970s and definitive artist of DC's Batman of that same period, relates in an interview how one of his innovative comics work in DEADMAN, a shortlived 1960s DC comics title that has now achieved cult status among collectors of American comics, was deprived of its expected high sales. The culprit for the low sales on Neal's titles were attributed to unscrupulous newstand dealers. After learning that Neal's work was very much in demand by fans, the newstand dealers would then keep huge piles of Neal's comics work and report them to the publisher (NPP/DC) as unsold. The newstand dealers would later resell Neal's comics at high prices to serious comics collectors. With this circumstance in mind, how else can one explain the conundrum of being a superstar comics artist while one's titles languished and then eventually cancelled after a few issues? Neal Adams:

"CBA: Did the cancellation of 'Deadman" in Strange Adventures come as a surprise?

Neal: They have a concept in the comic book business called affidavit returns. If you send 50 comic books to your local distributor, and he tells you that he didn't sell 40 of them, he doesn't have to rip off the covers or cut the title off and return it to you like he once had to, he has to sign a piece of paper that says he destroyed the 40 copies. It was the beginning of comic conventions and comics dealers in those days and the question you have to ask is, where did they get the books they sold? The place they got them was out the back door and their local comics distributors who invariably had a table in that backroom that had Playboy magazines, Marvel Comics, DC Comics and other magazines. For 25% of the cover price you could buy those magazines. In light of that, Strange Adventures "didn't sell well enough", so they cancelled it. I did the X-Men for 10 issues and they "didn't sell well enough to continue", so they cancelled it. Green Lantern/Green Arrow "didn't sell well enough", so they cancelled it. On the other hand, I have perhaps signed tens, if not hundreds of thousands of these comic books at conventions. On the other hand, the comics that I did covers for--Superman or Superboy--would rise 10 or 15% in sales because I did the covers. That meant that the collectors weren't rapacious enough to collect those simply because I just did the covers but the ones which I drew the insides. That was a very sgtrange phenomenon. The books that were stand out and did really well didn't have better sales than any of the other books; sometimes less. The reason? They were disappearing out of the back of the distributor's warehouses. Why did they cancel the book? I think we may have some dishonest people in the magazine distribution business...or not.

Remember also... when sales weren't doing well, apparently the numbers lowered. When numbers go down and its a good book, in those days fan-dealers would dive in and buy as many copies from the distributors "cash table" as they could.

Mysteriously, the "apparent" sales would continue to drop. DC knew that they had a "hot book", but sales continued into the dumpster. Hell, when I went over to to do work at Marvel, they told me 'Deadman" was the onlyDC book they read at Marvel.

Carmine was baffled and remains baffled to this day, but remember Carmine was publisher in name only. He apparently didn't ever understand howsasles figures worked on "newstand sales".

For those of you care, it works like this: After one month you are told that percentage of your books were returned. As each succeeding month goes by, your returns increase while (obviously) your sales go down. This goes on for a final figure at six months. (Some returns trickle even then.) If returns come in after six months and they're valid, the distributor makes an accomodation. But six months is it. Your sales never rise because sales are based on returns.

Carmine never quite understood sales and "returns", and a lot of misinformation was disseminated at DC in those days, to the detriment of editorial and creative.

Personally, I made friends in the accounting and record-keeping and production departments. after a while I knew more than the editors and sometimes I shared that information with some very confused and misinformed folk.

If you doubt my information, please remember Continuity Comics were on the newstands for about three years and we are a "hands on" publisher. (Source: "Neal Adams interview: A Pitched Battle from Day One" conducted by Jon B. Cooke, from Comic Book Artist No. 5 (1st series), Comic Book Artist Collection Vol. 2, TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002).

Dishonesty in comics distribution is not exclusive to the U.S. The now defunct Philippine komiks industry of the 1970s and 1980s was also prone to this cancer caused and aggravated mainly by the Roces family's monopoly of the komiks industry particularly its distribution system:

"Para sa maliit at bagong tagapaglathala ng komiks mabigat ang problema ng pagdidistribyut. May mga 300 ahente ang Atlas at GASI sa buong Pilipinas; karamihan ay naging ahente ng lumang Ace at mga pahayaganng Roces magmula pa noong 1947. Maraming mga sub-ahenteng kilala ang mga ito kaya't praktikal lamang na makikipag-ugnay sa kanila ang sino mang pabliser ng komiks. Ngunit sa katagalan ng negosyo ng mga nasabing ahente sa mga Roces at sa laki din ng bolyum ng benta nila mula sa Atlas at GASI, malamang na hindi nila pag-ukulan ng pansin ang pabliser na walang pangalan. Ang wika nga ni Ed Plaza, dating patnugot ng Atlas, at ngayon ng Rex Group of Komiks:

"Inalagaan na ng mga distributors (ahente) ang mga sub-agents nito, say about 20 years hawak na nila. Kaya kung magpadala ang distributors sa sub-agents, malakassila sa sub-agents. Kung hindi nila (bagong pabliser) makuha ang services ng distributors, talo ka na doon."

Kaya't kadalasan, ang bago at maliit na tagapaglathala ay sapilitang nagbebenta ng komiks sa mga sub-ahente na mismo. Magandang plano sana dahil wala nang ahenteng babahaginan ng kita, subalit nagiging isang sanhi ng pagkalugi ng bago at nagsasariling tagapaglathala.

Dahil hindi pa kilala ang komiks nila at hindi pa tantiyado kung ilan ang maipagbibili, binibigyan nila ang sub-ahente ng mas maluwag na kredito at pribilehiyong magsauli ng mga siping hindi naibenta. Sa madaling salita, ang binabayaran lamang ng sub-ahente ay ang mga kopyang naipagbili. Kung minsan pa ay ipinagpapaliban ng sub-ahente ang pagbabayad hanggang sa magsara ang bagong pabliser." (Source: "Ang Industriya ng Komiks: Noon at Ngayon" by Corazon D. Villareal, Kultura Magazine, January 1990 issue).

How then does one guard against dishonesty and honest inadvertence/negligence by the comics dealer? One suggestion provided by Joe Brancatelli is the employment of roving human checkers who visit newstands regularly just to check and make sure that the comics title or titles are being properly displayed. Joe Brancatelli:

"One remedy for the crumbling system--the one that could quickly and cheaply be grafted onto the comic world--was stumbled upon years ago by Generoso Pope, the prosperous and cunning publisher of THE NATIONAL ENQUIRER. Possibly the least credible--but most widely read--weekly periodical in the world, TNE still uses the Pope formula to give it the circulation edge over his two gossips-come-lately, the schlocky NATIONAL STAR and TIME Inc.'s light, airy and superfluous PEOPLE.

Briefly, Pope employs his own 900-person staff of part-time and full-time employees, all with the sole task of making sure that THE NATIONAL ENQUIRER is well represented on the nation's retail periodical racks. While TNE, like every fast-selling magazine, is distributed by a major national company which specializes in periodical dissemination, Pope long ago saw the need for in-house employees to service retailers directly.

Best of all, the system works. THE NATIONAL ENQUIRER sells about 5 million copies a week at 30 cents each--an incredible 260 million copies a year. And, according to GOOD HOUSEKEEPING editor John Mack Carter, the retail check system spells the difference between TNE and dozens of other competing weekly gossip tabloids.

Writing in FOLIO, THE MAGAZINE OF MAGAZINE MANAGEMENT, THE WELL-RESPECTED AND POWERFUL carter said "The importance of this regular policing has been proven in tests of (retail) displays left without checkups. The weekly sale of copies without any checup falls 40 percent."

Pope, Carter continued, has a dream of selling 80 percent of all the copies he prints (most magazines are profitable at the 45% percent mark, while a 50% sale is considered exceptional). "This is not an impossible dream," Carter concludes, "as (NATIONAL ENQUIRER) sales have gone as high as 89 percent and rarely fall as low as 70 percent" (Emphasis Mine) (Source: "The Comic Books" by Joe Brancatelli, Vampirella No. 55, October, 1976 issue, Warren Publishing)

Brancatelli is a little off however. As early as the 1940s, American comics publishers such as NPP/DC comics and EC Comics were already implementing the Pope formula of employing human checkers on newstands nationwide. DC in fact, used the system quite often to ensure its million copy sales levels. This was confirmed by no less than the late IRWIN DONENFELD, former co-owner and editorial director of National Periodical Publications/DC Comics, and son of the late HARRY DONENFELD, co-founder and co-owner of DC Comics. In a rare appearance before the 2001 San Diego Comics Convention, Irwin Donenfeld was asked the following:

"MARK EVANIER: To what extent, at this point, did you keep tabs on the competitors? Did you look at their sales figures closely?

DONENFELD: Every day. (laughs) Every day, I got a report on all the salesthat were going on in whatever town it was. We had traveling men and we had local men. The local man would stay in one town, and he'd work all the racks and make sure our magazines were out. These racks were the same we sent to the various stores, to keep our sales up." (Emphasis Mine)

and in the succeeding part of the interview...

"AUDIENCE MEMBER: Why do you think the comic business can't sell anywhere near the number of comics that you sold at the time?

DONENFELD: Very simple...newstands. I live in the city of Westport, Connecticut, with 25,000 people. There are many newstands that sell magazines, and not one of them sells comic books. When I was there, it couldn't happen. I had a local man. He would come in, he would put in a rack, and we would sell comics. The business is different today. Today, the magazine publishers, whatever they publish, they sell out and that's it. They're not returnable. In our day, anythng that they didn't sel, they didn't pay for. So returns were very important, and the percentage of sale was very important. Today, the magazines on the newstands are returnable. The comic magazines are not. They're in a separate category altogether now." (Emphasis Mine) (Source: "There's a lot of Myth out there" Interview of Irwin Donenfeld transcribed by Brian K. Morris and edited by Roy Thomas, Alter Ego Magazine No. 26, TwoMorrows Publishing, July 2003 issue).

The Roces komiks monopoly however, does one better than the Americans in that, most of the banketa newstand dealers and agents were already loyal to the Rceses and their komiks. The Roceses didn't need checkers. They had regular surveys conducted every 3 months where their editors and other personnel would personally travel and visit newstands and inquire what the hottest selling title was and their audience's preferences at the moment. So with this added activity, biased exposure to rack space was ensured to the Roceses.

Yet, even this kind of warped and unfair loyalty has its limits. What goes around comes around. You deal with crooks in a crooked way, they get back to you also in a crooked way. Pretty soon, comics newstand dealers "leased for reading" and on the spot the Roceses' komiks, pocketing the earnings and then returning the unsold (but thoroughly read) komiks back to the Roceses. So even here, the Roceses needed checkers for policing but it was never done.

Joe Brancatelli notes however, that the unique situation of comics (in America specifically) is benefitted by an active fan network. Brancatelli suggests that instead of employing checkers on salary, comics publishers could avail of the comics fan's "volunteerism". To wit:

"Unlike Pope, they wouldn't even have to pay people to do their checking. There are thousands of fans across the country who would gladly volunteer to check newstands, if for no other reason than to assure that they themselves can purchase the comic book they want when it is published. Should some farsighted publisher be so generous as to offer his volunteer checkers a bonus in the way of free merchandise, he would assure a rabid loyalty and devotion to retail-rack checking heretofore unknown in business circles.

The advantages are obvious for both the publisher and the fan, as well as the distributor. For the publisher, once aware of which retail outlets are undersupplied, he can act to rectify the situation quickly, improve his sales markedly--and possibly even keep his job when the stockholders ask him what he's done for them lately. For the fan, he has the satisfaction of knowing the comic-book business needs him as well as just his dollars, and he is also assured of a relatively even flow of comic books. And for the distributor (and retailer), they have an opportunity to increase their own flagging profits and have eager-beaver--unpaid--volunteers doing the work they should have done a long time ago." (Source: "The Comic Books" by Joe Brancatelli, Vampirella No. 55, Warren Publishing, October, 1976 issue)

The idea that volunteerism may be sourced from the comics fans themselves has some possibility especially today when we consider the proliferation of various telecommunications facilities such as the internet and celfones with camera, email, and video functions. Such volunteerism could also help promote awareness and support for Filipino comics publications in particular.

The problem however, at least in Metro Manila, is the 2001 prohibition by Executive Order from the Office of the President, implemented by MMDA circular, prohibiting newstands and sidewalk vendors from plying their trade in the streets without a license, especially their of selling smut publications. Because of this, there are now relatively few banketa newstand stalls in the metropolis. Not a good venue for comics distribution at the moment. Newspaper, magazine, and comics dealers in Metro Manila have formed dealers associations accredited by the MMDA who charge their members license fees. Further, these associations monitor and police the kind of publications that are to be sold in the banketa. In effect, members ultimately pay for their own censorship and monopoly.

The dearth of banketa stalls in Metro Manila's sidewalks, the biggest market for the Filipino Komiks of yesteryear, have certainly placed a dent in this avenue for comics distribution. But knowing illegal vendors, these laws are eventually broken. Only time will tell when they'll come back in unmanageable droves moreso when our present economic crisis worsens.

Besides, there has been a change of urban lifestyle in urban centers of the country. Today, because of the worsening economic crisis most people limit their expenditures on travel whenever they can. And when they do decide to travel, they try to go straight to their destinations like supermarkets, malls, and especially the corner sari-sari store.

Other than the few licensed banketa newstand dealers, there are now more modern book, magazine and newstand dealers (i.e., Book Sale, Emerald Headway, Binondo Marketing, Filbar's, and others) that have stalls strategically situated in areas frequented by the Class A, B, and C crowd such as shopping malls, supermarkets, mass transport terminals, and schools. Most of today's globalized Filipino and licensed foreign comics with a "westernized" flavor are actually found in these stands.

The die-hard comics fans of the late 1960s and early 1970s unwittingly helped contribute to the fall of newstand comics sales in America by compelling newstand dealers to "steal" huge portions of comics titles before returning the "unsold" portions back to the publishers. The newstand dealers then sell the stolen pieces through the backdoor and onto the waiting, sweaty hands of die-hard comics fans at exorbitant "collector's item prices". This situation, aggravated by other complications some related previously by Joes Brancatelli, sent wrong sales signals and information to the publishers leading to the unfair cancellation of some titles.

Eventually, the newstand sales for comics in America dried up. Where now, can American comics be distributed? Ironically, the distribution problem was saved by the same die-hard comics fans themselves when they formed the so-called "direct market". By the late 1970s, many comics fans in the U.S. became dealers and formed stores that sold nothing but comics. These establishments came to be known as comics specialty shops. Many independent titles such as Elfquest, Cerebus the Aardvark, Sable, and new independent comic publishers such as Eclipse, Star Reach, First, and Pacific, thrived and sold their comics here. It was a new distribution system for comics.

Seeing this, Marvel and DC began entering the direct market in the early to mid-1980s and their sales began to perk. The direct market operated under an arrangement wherein a comics specialty shop would buy comics "at half-cover price" DIRECTLY from Marvel and DC. This certainly helped solve a lot of problems. Pretty soon, comics specialty shops mushroomed in the U.S. as well as comics distributors who specialized in purchasing comics at discount from comics publishers and of "distributing" them to the comics stores.

It all came crashing down in the mid to late 1990s when Marvel tried to monopolize the direct market by buying out one of the huge comics distributors at the time: the now defunct "Heroes World" and of compelling comics specialty shops to sell mostly Marvel comics and having all other comics publishers have their titles distributed through Heroes World (for a fee). Dominoes started falling until eventually, a lot of comics specialty shops in America closed down until today, only a few remain controlled by the one remaining humongous comics distributor: DIAMOND which is partnered with DC Comics.

This little detour in history shows that the establishment of a direct market by comics fans as a DISTRIBUTION alternative to the newstands, is what helped save the American mainstream comics industry in the late 70s and 1980s. A similar arrangement could be established here in the Philippines by Filipino comics fans (assuming of course there are Filipino comics titles out there that's worth the trouble) with the historical precaution that Filipinos should guard against monopolistic actions by comics publishers or other entities.

But comics specialty shops are also notoriously known for nurturing a market of "comics fans" with limited interests and genres. In short, the potential for growth, of attracting new audiences and introducing innovations is stifled when we limit ourselves to the enclosed "artform" mentality of the geeky comics fan and creator. This would mean then, selling and distributing the comics medium to a wider mass audience. But how, considering the moral fallibilities and honest inadvertences of the banketa newstand dealer, and the bias of most upper class bookstore and magazine dealers?

One possible solution is the introduction of the comics vending machine. This is not at all strange. In France and Japan, two of the great comics producing nations in the world, comics and graphic novels (even pocketbooks) are sold through comics vending machines. French and Japanese comics are mostly thick and in BOOK form. If strategically placed in key secure and pilot areas, an alternative distribution system for comics could be developed. The vending machine itself can even serve a double purpose by having its sides available for outdoor advertisement which means additional income for the comics distributor or publisher. With some modifications, this specialized vending machine for comics could also serve as a survey machine recording the needs and wants of a particular reader.

In closing, it is hoped that the short observations above have made one aware of the unique problems comics distribution entail. Distribution is a separate specialization, and logistical operation in itself. If one is serious about promoting comics as a form of media, specifically as print media, the distribution aspect cannot be set aside flippantly. Companies that concentrate only on comics distribution have shown to be more profitable than comics publishers. It is where most of the money is considering that you don't just distribute the title of one comics publisher but of ALL comics publishers. If there's any creativity and innovation that ought to be done in the Philippine comics scene, distribution should be of paramount concern.

Distribution matters.

What do Filipinos spend their money on?

Venturing into comics publishing, marketing and distribution, entails prior background information on the economy, specifically on the prevailing consumer market in the Philippines.

The following overview may appear be daunting and hopeless to the average and clueless comics reader, would-be publisher, or creator, unaccustomed as most of them are to the realities of day to day commerce, but to marketing practitioners and professionals, the scenario is nothing more than another marketing problem demanding the formulation of real and workable marketing solutions. Why not then apply some of their proposed solutions to comics publishing? Printed comics after all, are a retail trade item.

We begin with a survey of the Philippine consumer market, its market segments, the impact of the present economic (and political) crisis, and then end with a possible solution to the problem of marketing and selling printed comics to such a market, applying proposed solutions by marketing professionals and practitioners.

THE FILIPINO CONSUMER MARKET IN GENERAL

The conservative and general assumption is that five (5) individuals comprise one Filipino household, a nuclear family. With a present population of about 80 to 84 million Filipinos, there are at present 15.3 million households all over the country with 2.5 million specifically residing in the Greater Manila Area. 5.3 million households translate to 76.5 million Filipinos, while 2.5 million households to 12.5 million Filipinos occupying the whole of Metro Manila from Valenzuela to Muntinlupa City.

This consumer market of 76.5 million is further classified into five (5) segments or class demographic by the Philippine advertising industry. As of 1999, families in the lower class households account for 90% of total households as follows: A,B -- 1%, C-- 9%, D--55%, and E-35%.

Class A,B constitute the upper income classes, C is the middle class, D is the lower middle class, and E comprise those who live below the poverty line of less than Php 32.00 a day. It was observed that the share of the class E segment (35%) in the consumer market has continuously decreased over the years due to extreme poverty, but this is tempered by a concomittant growth in the lower middle class D (55%).

Of these segments, the D and E markets are considered the most important in rural areas accounting for 98% when compared to a lesser 85% in urban areas.

SPENDING POWER AND PRIORITIES OF THE FILIPINO MAJORITY

Average household spending in rural areas is presently pegged at Php 3,150.00 a month or, Php 105.00 a day, while in urban areas, average household spending is at Php 3,592.00 monthly or, Php 120.00 a day. This Php 105.00 (or Php 120.00) ration is shared by all five household members in one day.

Given this measly family budget the next thing to consider is the spending priorities of rural and urban families. On this score, it was found that rural shoppers spend 52% of their income on food (i.e., carbonated soft drinks, noodles, coffee, snack foods, cooking oil, coffee creamer, dietetics, bouillon, chocolates, candies, soy sauce, MSG, biscuits, choco-drinks, sardines, powdered milk, hotdog, vinegar, ready-to-drink juice in tetrapacks, luncheon meat, and corned meat) when compared to only 40% by urban dwellers. The remainder of rural and urban families' income is spent on essential non-food items such as: laundry products, paper products including sanitary protection, diapers, bathroom tissue, facial tissue and table napkins, liquid shampoo, toilet soap, diapers, toothpaste, facial care products, hair conditioner, sanitary protection, fabric softeners, lotion, bleach, deodorant, talcom powder/liquid (and insecticide by the urban shopper). These then are the spending priorities of Filipinos in today's hard and turbulent economic times. (Source: "Basket Behavior: Understanding Buying Patterns, Especially during Hard Times" by Ramil Digal Dulle, BusinessDay Magazine, August 15-September 4, 2005 issue citing survey data furnished by Gladys De Veyra, AC Nielsen Executive Director for Retail Measurement Services).

THE EFFECT OF AN ECONOMIC CRISIS ON SPENDING PRIORITIES AND POWER

Given the above data, one should seriously pause to consider whether printed glossy paged comics publications with an Php 85.00 to Php 100.00 price tag is part of the above spending priorities of the low income market. No wonder the target market of imported and globalized Filipino comics are the economic elite, or the few hundred thousand upper income A,B class demographic who comprise only 1% of the consumer market.

With the recent oil price hike, political turmoil, and rising inflation, there has been a marked decline in consumer spending:

"Local consumers will likely buy less goods for the rest of the year--including this coming holiday season--as their confidence in the economy continues to weaken, a central bank survey showed.

Despite this, BSP Governor Amando Tetangco, Jr. told reporters the consumer outlook was expected to improve substantially in 2006. "But it will weaken in the last two quarters of the year", he said in a briefing last Friday.

According to the BSP survey, the decline in consumer expectations was due primarily to the respondents' pessimism on the country's economic conditions. Respondents were also more cautious about their families' financial situation.

According to a central bank statement, respondents cited the high prices of food, utilities, oil and transportation as their top concern. xxx

Despite an anticipated decline in family income, respondents expect their expenditures on basic commodities to rise by an average of 4.6 percent toward the end of the year--an offshoot of rising prices rather than increased consumption.

The survey revealed, however, that consumers expect a slight improvement in next year's outlook, although it remains overwhelmingly negative." (Source: "Consumers turning pessimistic: BSP survey cites rising prices, insufficient incomes" by Daxim L. Lucas, Philippine Daily Inquirer, September 12, 2005).

PRODUCTS OF VICE A SPENDING PRIORITY

The majority of economically hard-pressed and pessimistic Filipinos are now on scrimping and saving mode. They have become more cost-conscious and discriminating in their purchases than ever before. Products that are not essential to their survival and coping needs have to take the back seat.

Furthermore, it was found that in times of crisis the low-income poor spend more on non-food items such as liquor, cigarettes and tobacco:

"With barely enough money to buy food, the poor are spending more to maintain their vices like drinking and smoking, a study said.

The study by Manila-based economic and political analyst Peter Wallace showed that the poor and those barely out of poverty accounted for an increasing share of spending on alcohol, cigarettes and tobacco (ACT).

Wallace noted that from 76.7 percent in 1997, the share of the D and E classes in total tobacco consumption increased to 82.8 percent 2000.

On the consumption of alcohol beverages, the share of the D and E classes rose from 72.7 percent in 1997 to 75.7 percent in 2000." (Source: "Poor buying more booze, cigs--study" by Carlito Pablo, Philippine Daily Inquirer, October 11, 2004).

In addition to the above, Filipinos turn to God and gambling as well:

"In times of crisis, Filipinos tend to turn to God, and gambling. Davao Archbishop Fernando Capalla, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), said he noticed that during difficult times, "there are two places people frequent more: lotto (outlets) and the Church."

Many of the predominantly Roman Catholic Filipinos hope for a quick fix to their poverty and bet what little money they have on government sponsored lotteries, Capalla said. "Gambling here is a form of survival, unlike in Europe, where it is a pastime. That's giving false hope to people. False incentives like the two-child policy being proposed. We have failed in making people have a consistent conscience that they stick to," he said.

While Church officials have strongly opposed gambling, Capalla admitted that he and many other priests also refer poor people asking them for financial help to the state-run Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) office, which runs the lotto games." (Source: "In crisis, Filipinos turn to God, lotto" by Nikko Dizon, Philippine Star, October 11, 2004)

Consequently then, the more one ponders this marked and extreme change in lifestyle from simple living to practical survival, it is evident that printed glossy paged comics written in English, are not part of poor, functionally literate, Filipinos' spending priorities. To reiterate, these imported and "globalized" comics are a "luxury" patronized only by an affluent, Westernized, and enthusiastic few. And where exactly are these affluent, rich few located?

IMPERIAL MANILA: HOME OF THE ECONOMIC ELITE

"Official data for 2000 place the average family income in Metro Manila at nearly four times that of the ARMM, the country's poorest region. Furthermore, families living below the poverty line in Metro Manila constitute only 3.7 percent of all Filipinos families living in poverty. This translates to 1.3 million persons or 4.1 percent of all individuals living in poverty. In contrast, 21 percent of all Filipinos who are not considered poor (about 10 million persons) reside in Metro Manila--confirming a long-running suspicion that the rich, more than the poor, tend to congregate in the nation's capital." (Source: "Metro Manila: Shared Prosperity --take away its power base and Metro Manila will rely more on the other states to help its people live decently" by Carmel V. Abao and Maitet Diokno Pascual, Newsbreak Special Edition, August 1, 2005).

Metro Manila, from Valenzuela City to Muntinlupa City, is so highly urbanized that its so-called "poor" are more well-off than those in the provinces. Pointedly, even though severe health, sanitation, garbage, and air pollution problems abound in Metro Manila's "poor" communities, these so-called "poor" actually earn twice as much as the average poor Filipino family. (Source: "Metro Manila: Shared Prosperity", Ibid).

Why is this so? The answer is simple. All economic and political power reside, or are centralized in Metro Manila. That is why there are proponents of a federal form of government advocating that such central and monopolized power be dispersed, shared, and "democratized" to the other poor regions of the country. Thus:

"Metro Manila is the single biggest market for products of many regions in Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. It is also a main supplier of commodities to practically all the regions, as far north as the Cordilleras and as far south as the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), according to trade and industry data of the National Statistics Office." (Source: "Metro Manila: Shared Prosperity", Ibid.)

WHY MARKETERS ADVISE THAT YOU SELL TO THE LOWER INCOME MARKET

Despite such crisis however, those in the marketing profession now advise that companies formerly catering to the highly profitable A,B market with large disposable income, reform their marketing strategy and target instead the low income D and E markets. Feddie Magpantay, Executive Director of A.C. Nielsen, a world renowned media research multinational company, made this same disclosure during the first Philippine Association of National Advertisers' Marketing and Brand Advancement Seminar held at The Loft, Rockwell, Makati City, as follows:

"Magpantay shared the latest research findings on the profiles of the Filipino as consumers. Among her strongest recommendations were for marketing professionals to tap the undeserved low-end market as well as those in the countryside and the increasing number of "empty nesters". (Source: "Marketing success strategies revealed at PANA MBA confab", Manila Standard Today newspaper, September 8, 2005).

Prof. Jose Jesus Roces, President of the Asia Pacific Marketing Federation (APMF) expounds on this new development as follows:

"What is the issue of the "have less"? The issue for them is a double edged challenge. First is affordabilitiy then the second is Cash Flow. If you are able to overcome these hurdles for the "have less" then you have a potential market of approximately 20 million Filipinos. And if you do your marketing mathematics well, you could expand into the larger (albeit, lower income) segment where the majority of 60 million Filipinos are.

These are the "have less" of our society. They deal with the issues of Affordability and Cash Flow on a daily basis. Their consumption demands are normal but their ability to purchase is limited. xxx

How do you respond to the challenge of serving the needs and wants of the "have less"? You need to give smaller offerings with less cash outlay and increase the value for money proposition of your offers. This is not as simple as it seems.

To produce smaller offerings means that you will affect your production processes (in fact, you may need to purchase packaging machines that do smaller packs). You need to create an effective marketing communication campaign to support the alunch of the smaller offerings. The challenge will be communicating the value for money proposition in smaller offerings because that is not the competitive advantage ingrained in smaller offerings. The core value of smaller offerings is to address the issue of affordability rather than value for money. Thus, this will pose a communication challenge to the marketer. xxx

We have seen the "pasa-loads and the e-loads" emerge as a strong attractor to the "have less". If we closely examine consumer behavior of these products/services, it becomes quickly evident that this segment of the market does not complain very much.

This is a very lucrative market that is waiting to be tapped. It is a market that does not require as high a level of service as required by the more sophisticated markets. It is a segment that pays more and is relatively easy to communicate to.

Why not target the "have less"? The "have less" do not complain as much and do not expect a lot. And the "have less" pay more." (Source: "Marketing to the "HAVE LESS" by Assoc. Prof. JJ Roces, Marketing Insights: The Official Magazine of the Philippine Marketing Association, July-August, 2005).

As mentioned elsewhere in this blog, our middle class has shrunk due to the economic and political crisis plaguing our country. Most of them have become overseas contract workers while those who remained, got poorer and swelled the number of the lower middle class D and low income class E (i.e., comprising 55% and 35% respectively of the Philippine consumer market). Businesses have therefore concentrated on the upper income class A,B, market. But these markets are now nearing saturation points. There are too many players and products within this high end market compounded by the fact that this market is highly westernized and discriminating.

The class D and E demographic on the other hand, are easier to please and are fervent patrons of essentials such as food and non-food products whose retail sales have been experiencing a slow but steady rise since year 2000 despite frequent crisis. Their continued and resilient purchasing power (albeit limited) could be attributable to the billion dollar remittances of Filipino OFWs abroad and the increasing urbanization in some parts of the country where, due to improved technology lessening the cost of production, most goods have consequently begun to cost less and thus become affordable to almost all within the six (6) income class demographics (i.e., appliances, television, second hand computers, etc.) Gladys de Veyra, Executive Director for Retail Measurement Services of A.C. Nielsen Philippines adds this observation on the untapped potential of the class D and E market:

"Our income class distribution may seem to remain in a sorry state. The vast majority of our people are merely surviving, and they have been doing so for the past several years. And they would likely remain so in the next few years.

This however, should not necessarily portend ill tidings for business, especially those in the consumer industry. On the contrary, with the hopefully continuous decrease in share of the class E, and with the population continuing to grow in the D class, opportunites abound. The huge proportion of the population belonging to the lower economic classes offer vast marketing opportunities.

But things have to be seen from their perspective. And seeing things from their perspective will not only open marketing opportunities, but also ways to help improve the lot of out people." (Source: "Forever Living in Exciting Times: A look at economic trends and Filipino Consumer buying patterns" by Gladys De Veyra, Business Day, August 15- September 04, 2005).

MARKETING OBSERVATIONS APPLIED TO COMICS PUBLISHING

Recalling the advise of Prof. JJ Roces above, if printed Filipino comics are to enter the class D and E markets, their production costs and consequently, price, should be lowered. Like the cheap but ubiquitous "sachets", "tipid packs", and "pasa-loads" we are looking at a probable scenario of Filipino comics selling at the same price level of these items. In format, they may be published in non-glossy newsprint paper, maybe in black and white, with maybe reduced page counts or paper size, and with a weekly or bi-weekly frequency. In other words, Filipino comics would have to roll with the times; skrimp and save. When subsequent demand and popularity of the comics feature develops, an improved product version or compiled reprint could be made later on and marketed to the upper income markets as a quality product with increased price.

We are also looking at a probable scenario where most of these cheap comics publications may have to be distributed away from the comics specialty shops frequented by the upper income market. Preferably, to reach their low income target market, avoid the corruption of the banketa kiosk newspaper dealers, as well as steer clear of the high magazine rack rental cost imposed by most urban supermarkets, our cheap Filipino comics publications may have to be sold in village sari-sari stores, groceries, and retail stores such as "Mini-Stop", "7-11", and "Shell Select", where essential food and non-food products are also being sold and frequented by the C, D, and E consumer market. Significantly, it was also observed that both upper and lower income groups frequent sari-sari stores more than supermarkets to save on transport and other costs, to wit:

"While both urban and rural shoppers buy from sari-sari stores every day, urban shoppers go to the supermarket three to four times a month, while rural households visit the supermarket twice a month at most." (Source: "Basket Behavior: Understanding Buying Patterns especially during Hard Times" by Ramil Digal Gulle, Business Day, August 15-September 04, 2005).

Admittedly, the foregoing scenario may seem amusing and appear to harken back to the olden days of the cheap, shoddily produced Filipino komiks of yesteryear. But given the above set of facts, we should honestly ask the question: should artistic pride stand in the way of practical reality?

As noted, there have been advances made in printing technology making the same affordable to those enterprising enough to meet the challenge. We are not short either on new, undiscovered, local talent. Right now, its a wide open space for opportunities. If Filipino comics publishers and creators can be flexible and show their adaptability with the times, its just possible that Filipino comics can regain its lost position as a medium of communication that is read and patronized by millions of mostly adult readers, becoming as well a lucrative venue for advertising.

Overview of the Book Publishing market in the Philippines

What is the present market situation for Filipino comics in book format, or "graphic novels"?

Admittedly, there have been few of these Filipino graphic novels introduced in the market and no official sales reports have as yet been made of their overall performance. Still, some background information wouldn't hurt when attempting to tread on the Philippine book market through graphic novel publishing.

So just how big is the book market? In what sense or approach can it be lucrative? What are the reading preferences and tastes of its various segments? What segment is more lucrative? Is it advisable to make Filipino graphic novels in the Filipino language rather than in English? Should Filipino graphic novels cater more to the few but affluent A, B elite market? Should Filipino graphic novels be more mass-based, and genre-oriented? Most importantly, should Filipino graphic novels be more fiction or entertainment based rather than oriented on information?

Prizewinning Filipino author,Tony Hidalgo, is the owner and Chief Executive Officer of a small but vigorous publishing house called "Milflores Publishing" which has grown phenomenally in 5 years beginning with sales of 4,260 books in 2000, to about 40,000 book sales expected this 2005; a growth rate of close to a thousand percent. Hidalgo was cited by Philippine Star newspaper columnist, Butch Dalisay, as having recently delivered a paper on the state of book publishing in the Philippines. Hidalgo's insights are herein quoted as follows:

"The most important constraint for book publishers at the macro level...is the widespread poverty in the country...Another important constraint is the mismatch between the books that the best Filipino minds write and the needs and preferences of readers.

Most Filipino books are still written in English though most readers prefer books in Filipino. The best Filipino writers will concentrate on writing fiction (novels, short stories, plays) and poetry in English, while nine out of 10 book buyers want information books.

Because of class differences in lifestyles and experiences, the content of the best Filipino literature in English is often at odds with what most readers want from fiction, so they turn instead, to the movies, telenovelas, and romance novels.

The small but affluent, A and B market is fluent in English and should be the natural market for Filipino literature in English but the best writers. Unfortunately, this segment is also highly Westernized and prefers books by foreign authors. Some of them are even unaware that there is now a fairly large body of work by Filipino authors in English." ("Minding the Market" by Butch Dalisay, Philippine Star, October 3, 2005)

And how is Milflores Publishing policy being implemented given the above market data? In the same paper delivered by Tony Hidalgo, the following is disclosed:

"In more practical terms, Milfones engaged several dozens of the best, award-winning writers to contribute to humorous anthologies on popular topics like shopping malls, insomnia, beauty pageants, being a Noranian, etc. We also published collections of humorous essays by good writers on migration to America, pregnancy, the single life for women, the gay world, etc. We only focused on the popularity of the topic of the books--we never told our writers what to write and never asked them to simplify anthing for the mass market. In fact, we always selected manuscripts where the writer poured everything he/she had into it, for we believe that books with great passion are the best ones, or to paraphrase Simone de Beauvoir, "In some sense, every good book is a cry for help." ("Minding the Market", Ibid.)

Use of the Filipino language. Non-fiction. Essays. Humor. Popular topics. A policy of not writing below the mass market, or of not presuming the mass market audience to be "dumb". Works with substance and passion, not mere imagery, illustration, and flash. These are the guideposts on which Milflores bases its success in the book publishing arena. With such criteria in mind, do we see the same thing emulated as well by the few Filipino graphic novels in the market?

(Other sources : www.publishingtrends.com/copy/0209/philippines.html, and www. publishersweekly.com/article/CA16479.html?pubdate=5%2F23%2F1997&display=archive)

Postcript: The following related article entitled: "Truth Seeking at the 24th National Book Awards" by Alfred A. Yuson, appearing in the "Philippine Star" newspaper's September 12, 2005 issue provides an interesting insight on how many Filipino authored books are actually sold in the market, thus:

"When Francisco C. Colayco mentioned at the podium that his winning title had already sold 50,000 copies, there was a buzz of shock and awe from the large crowd gathered for the 24th National Book Awards held on Spet. 4 at the World Trade Center, on the last day of the Manila International Book Fair. The book was Wealth Within Your Reach: Pera Mo, Palaguin Mo (published by Colayco Foundation for Education), which won one of the two awards given to books on Business and Economics. The five-digit number he cited is the stuff of wild dreams for literary writers and most other authors, especially in our country. But then we should acknowledge the terrific seduction offered by the very title of Colayco's book. Seated on the front row as Manila Critics Circle members, judges and presenters, National Artist for literature Virgilio Almario and I looked at one another incredulously, before nodding in a soft eureka way. So that's what it takes. Want to be a bestseller? Come up with a title that promises to deepen one's pockets."

In another related development, there's a bestselling black and white graphic novel or more precisely, "manga" on U.S. wiz investor Warren Buffet, that's now practically sold out in the high-end book specialty shops of Manila (i.e., Page One and Bibliarch). Yes, you read right. Its a Japanese BIOGRAPHICAL manga in english on Warren Buffet's life, accomplishments, and even containing some explanations of economic and investment principles. Who says comics can't also be informative? Filipino comics creators sure have a long way to go.