In 2016, Seattle nerds Jill and Raegan Taplin envisioned a new kind of comic book store. With the help of almost 100 community members they opened Outsider Comics and Geek Boutique, a space that featured comic books, fashion, jewelry, art, and community.
Ever since its inception Outsider has been a haven for fans and geeks that were traditionally outright ignored by the comics and pop culture industries: people who were not cisgender, white, heterosexual, men.
While the store managed to survive the initial years of the COVID 19 pandemic, the Taplins were unable to keep it running and put the store for sale in 2022. The community was, understandably, shocked.
To save the store that so many loved, a team of nerds gathered together to purchase Outsider with a new goal: to create the country’s first employee-owned co-op comic book store.
Unfortunately, the upkeep cost of a fully employee-owned cooperative is not something the market could bear, and despite the support of the community the store needed to be restructured in order to survive.
As of early 2024, Outsider Comics has switched to a traditional owner-operated model and all but one member of the original cooperative has left, and the store is operated by Wing alone. That’s me. Hello. I’m writing this thing. :3
While, to quote animator Ian Jones-Quartey’s old webcomic RPG World, “sigh, times are tough”, we’re going to keep Outsider Comics going as a haven for those of us who have been on the outside for too long, and with your support, we’re pretty darn sure we can do it!
Original Crowdfunding Backers
A. Kwan
Alton Capps
Amy
Barb Staigerwald
Ben Smith
Bill Garrett
Bill Williams
Catherine A Creel
Chrissy Wiley
Christy
Cindy & Dana
Corey Churchill
Courtney Miller
Dani Shuping
Danielle Marshall
Dany Del Toro
Darren Giles
David Pomerico
Deanna Spence
Edward Mcnulty
Elaine Bongiorno-Cotta
Elizabeth Wilber
Emet Comics
Eric Palicki
Erin Cahill
Friday Afternoon Tea, LLC
G. Maynard
Hiram G Wells
Jason Megatron Burrows
Jeffrey A. Jones
Jennifer Lane
Jessica Poore
John D. Roberts
John Newquist
John Powell
Josh Daunhauer
Kachael Stocks
Kaja Foglio
Karen Green
Katherine Sultan
Kathy & Tony Lyon
Kim Stroup
Lien
Lonnie Comics
Margaret McCall and Ian Hill
MarsGuyPhil
Mat Fleck
Megan
Micah Krabill
Michael G
Monte Cook Games
Olivia Hernández
Pete Curry
Rachel Kuck
Ryann M
Sandy Frankel
Tasha Turner
The Funks
The Ralyas
The Wilson Family
Thomas Ally
Todd McKimmey
Tyler and Emily Freidenrich
Wolfgang Baur