Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dimitrios Fragiskatos. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Dimitrios, thanks for joining us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

I had no savings and no credit. I worked retail at a comic store for 12 years, and even as a manager did not have a wage that can let me both afford a studio apartment and put something to the side. I had a support system, in terms of emotional support and a home, in the worst case scenario through my family and my partner, but no inheritance or grants. But I had an idea of what I wanted my business to be, and I looked at money as a resource, and not a goal. Although, I would need this resource to start the business, I decided to lo0k at other things, I would need, as well. I made the business plan for what would be Anyone Comics and shopped it around amongst customers, and acquaintances I had who may be interested in investing.
In my business plan, I outlined what the store would be; a comic HUB, not a store. It would be a place where people can come and meet other artists, or professionals, and a place where people through activities can be inspired to CREATE.
I also outlined, where I would go to by inventory, supplies, furniture, who I would staff the store with and how we would execute events.
What I learned was my 12 years working retail, were not wasted, for it was that experience that helped inform my goals. Furthermore, with that business plan and with the recognition of my experience, I wasn’t just able to find an investor, but pick amongst a few to find one, most compatible with my goals.

Dimitrios, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I grew up loving comic books. I was exposed to them through my cousins, the cartoons, and through school. Comic books started off to me as an extension of my adoration for Greek mythology and stories of heroes. When I was a teenager in thw mid- 90’s, I discovered the Doom Patrol, and was introduced to a facet I never considered… comics as a medium! Although the Doom Patrol started off as a standard superhero team (albeit a strange one) the ideas that their stories conveyed were different than what I saw in my life. They explored themes of gender, the idea of living as persons with disabilities, neuro-divergency, sex positivity, eastern and Jewish mythologies, things I wasn’t learning at home or school.
Anyone Comics offers that variety of storytelling. Although your standard superhero fare is available, we try to drive people towards new ideas. We offer as much variety as comics have, and encourage people who don’t see what they want to on shelves to make it.
Comic books, or sequential art, are such a strong communicator. Using words and pictures, you can give people context to learn ideas, words, history, science even math and computer programming. Anyone Comics is here to help anyone get into comic, or make comics

Does your business have multiple or supplementary revenue streams (like a ATM machine at a barbershop, etc)?

The comics industry is not a lucrative one. I knew this going in. (For those who would disagree with me. think about which movies have encouraged you to read a current comic. After all, Batman’s adventure continue every week, as do Spider-man’s)
The most valuable thing we offer for a store in New York City is space. We rent our finished basement for art events, that are not exclusively comics related. We’ve hosted stand-up, burlesque, figure drawing, art galleries, art classes etc. The fees we charge, though modest keep us afloat.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

The business partner I took on, was my comics collaborator, Thomas Gryphon. Together we worked on my first book Greasers in Greece about 1950’s Greasers who end up in Ancient Greece and later worked together on my later book Millennials: You Are Special, about a special powered and outcasted group hunted down by giant robots for their college debt. Although we were in different places in our lives at the time, they had helped me look for locations, but later offered to buy into a store in an area remote from where we were initially looking and not convenient to where they were at all.
I can’t speak to their motivation, but i feel that their investment in the store wasn’t just a show of faith in me, but an anchor for them to return to New York.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.anyonecomics.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/anyonecomics
• Facebook: facebook,com/anyonecomics
• Twitter: twitter.com/anyonecomics
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@anyonecomics7656
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/anyone-comics-brooklyn

Image Credits
Photo by Michael Galvan Photo byunknown Phot by Lulu Friestadt Art by Kirk Zanis Phot by Aynsley Leonardis Art by Damion Scott