Oni Press, DC, Binc unite to announce new fund for comics retailers

The Book Industry Charitable Foundation, or Binc, has announced the launch of the Comicbook United Fund, a dedicated relief fund designed to provide financial assistance to comic shops and their employees. Both DC Comics and the Oni Press-Lion Forge Publishing Group joined them in the announcement, with both offering funds to the organization.

The idea isn’t new — last year, the Oni-Lion Forge Publishing Group ​teamed with Binc to create the “Forge Fund.” It provides ​monetary support for comic retailers and their employees during times of hardship, like during Hurricane Harvey. The company continues to donate 5% of proceeds from their titles to the fund, and so far have donated $100,000 to the Forge Fund, which is operated by Binc

“The comic industry has a long history of banding together to protect and promote the art form we all love. We hope that this incredible action from DC will inspire a new wave of generosity and support for the great number of individuals and shops struggling through these times,” said James Lucas Jones, President and Publisher of Oni-Lion Forge Publishing Group. “Comics is an expansive community that still feels like a close-knit family, and these efforts feel like we are helping family members.”

For their part, DC Comics donated $250,000 to the fund. Contributions from both companies have been rolled together to create this new fund, which is also the recipient of funds raised by the recent Creators 4 Comics auctions.

“If this pandemic has taught us anything it’s how precious and fragile the things that bring us happiness are, so we must protect the lifeblood of our industry,” said DC Publisher Jim Lee. “Oni-Lion Forge saw the need for this type of relief before there was a crisis, which is why DC is proud to now stand alongside them in this time of need for our retailers.”

You can read more about Binc’s work in this interview over at ICv2. Comic book stores looking for assistance during the current pandemic can apply for a grant on the Binc website. If you’d like to donate to the fund, you can do so using this dedicated form.