Mixam, the UK based print company have extended their operations overseas, looking to break into the US comic scene, while also providing UK comic creators with easy access to this lucrative market.

Since their first appearance at MCM London in October 2018, Mixam has become a new name on the UK comic printing scene. They regularly print comic books for the likes of Matt Garvey, TPub and Fair Spark Books, as well as monthly issues of Comic Scene UK magazine and the Etherington Brothers’ multi-record breaking Kickstarters.

• How to print your Indie Comics with Mixam

Following a soft launch in the US, (Mixam already print regular Kickstarter comic Skies of Fire, the wildly popular Deathwish and a variety of publications for Steve Jackson Games), they are now looking to expand into the US market. As well as printing books for US creators, they are also offering a ‘split shipping’ service which will allow UK creators to release books stateside at a fraction of the current cost of shipping books across the Atlantic.

By setting up their US operations, Mixam are looking to provide a single platform for comic creators on both sides of the pond, to order and distribute printed comics to a wider audience. TPub (Twisted Dark, The Theory) has already made use of this split shipping service to distribute thousands of comic books to storage centres across the UK, US and Canada.

Over the past 6 months, Mixam have really shaken up the UK comic printing scene and are offering a fantastic range of services for indie and small press creators. When asked about Mixam’s entrance into the comic scene, Marketing Manager, Adam Smith explained: “It took an incredible amount of planning. We had a 6 month road map to get to where we needed to be. And in hindsight, there’s a few things we’d definitely do differently. But by actually going and talking with people, getting to know creators and what they need from their printer, we believe has made a huge difference. There’s a wonderful community of comic creators all helping one another by sharing knowledge and resources. We’re proud to be able to be a part of that mix.”

Adam went on to say “The US market doesn’t demand more from their comic book printers compared to the UK comic scene and that the similarities could make the US an ideal audience for creators this side of the Atlantic.”

When asked about the difference between UK and US creators he said:  “I’d like to tell you that comic printing for the US is this big, crazy thing and that it’s all about crowdfunding. But from our experience so far, it’s very similar to the UK with a mixture of people printing for their Kickstarter fulfilment, online stores or ahead of conventions. And as for the content of the comics themselves, it really doesn’t seem as super hero heavy as you might expect. The majority are printing to US Standard size, the same as the UK. And they want the same good paper quality. So there doesn’t appear to be any obvious creative barriers between the US and UK.”

With the comics industry becoming increasingly self publisher focused and crowd funded, Mixam is providing another valuable service in a growing market.

To find out more about Mixam’s printing services in US, visit www.mixam.com/comicbooks