We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Brandon Jones. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Brandon below.

Alright, Brandon thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

Hastings was a huge part of my formative years. I spent countless hours at the store renting movies (on VHS and DVD), buying music, merch, and books. It was sometime in 2016 that they went out of business. A year later, I got the idea to start selling comics in a local flea market. I was still full-time at my previous job, so this was more of a side hustle. From 2017 to 2021, the business grew from a little glass shelf to our first storefront. It was never my intention to grow the business to what it is today. Honestly, I was just having fun buying/selling collectibles. We had a social media presence that we ran like any retail store would. The crazy part was that we were getting new comics every week while we were at a flea market. 2020 was the year that changed everything for us. The flea market we were in did not close. The only place in town to get comics was our booth (no one was doing anything close to the volume of books we had). Add to that eBay sales, and we were ready to take the next step to our own store.

Brandon, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

We are a dedicated comic book shop that receives the latest releases every week. We also offer a wide-ranging back issue collection for those seeking to complete their series or rediscover childhood favorites. Our inventory features graphic novels and a diverse selection of collectibles for fans of all ages. Many families visit us, and often a parent shares memories of their first comic with a child or helps them pick out their own. The store has a nostalgic feel and welcomes all.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Owning a business is a full-time job on top of another full-time job. It requires a certain amount of grit. Running a business is easy when it’s successful, when everything is going right. However, when things start to go south, you really find out how bad you want it. 2024 was a rough year for retail, in general. I know that we were down nearly 30%. Unlike corporate giants, we are not equipped to handle that kind of drop over a fiscal year. As many businesses do, we incurred significant debt to keep the business running. Thankfully, we never missed a step. But the toll it takes on you as a person is telling. Anxiety, sleepless nights, and so on. There was a point in 2024 when we considered closing. Yet, it was our amazing customers who helped us through. Their dedication to the store proved to be the deciding factor in staying open. We have not regretted that decision. And we are a stronger business for it.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media is such an important marketing tool that it cannot be overstated. We started on Facebook by posting every day, doing live broadcasts when we put out new comics (or other merchandise), and when we have events at the store. The big takeaway: create excitement and anticipation in your audience. You can do this by teasing upcoming items or events. We did a whole week’s worth of mystery posts where we gave a small piece of a picture and asked folks to guess the image. These types of things drive engagement.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://bonesyjonesycomics.com/
• Instagram: bonesyjonesycomicsnea
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bonesyjonesycomicsnea
• Other: We have a TikTok that is undergoing an overhaul. We have hired a “Gen Z” to help with staying on top of the current trends. The handle is the same as our others: bonesyjonesynea