My Comics Industry CV

Publishers, pop-culture websites, and their editorial and marketing departments: this posting documents my professional history as a comics retailer that informs my comics journalism, samples of which are also available on this blog.

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S! Brett Lord
615-516-2347
sbrettlord@gmail.com

PROFILE

Will Eisner "Spirit Of Comics" Retailer Award nominee &  finalist, returning to the world of comics retailing, marketing, and/or publishing. My career spans 20+ years in multi-store & mail-order management, sales & marketing, organizational development, and team-building. I am a creative thinker & quick learner, who leads by example & encouragement, coupled with humor, enthusiasm for teamwork, and a sense of urgency in work performance & problem solving. I prefer to promote a "work smart" organization.


RELEVANT EMPLOYMENT:

Management Trainee, Hastings Entertainment; St. Joseph, MO, 2010-2012

Trained in all aspects of store operations in high volume book-music-video-game store with the goal of relocating to & managing one of Hastings Entertainment's 140+ locations. To that end, I hired & trained a store staff of up to 50 with a keen eye to grooming future department managers, monitored & raised store profitability, involved myself & store in local community, carefully monitored competition, and engaged strict corporate guidelines in control of payroll & shrink.

Warehouse Manager/Convention Lead/Director of Marketing, TalesOfWonder.com; Buford, GA, 2004-2009

As Warehouse Manager: download orders & schedule order shipments based on current & pending inventory; maintain & adjust company inventory database; order replacement stock; print customer invoices, lead warehouse team in pick/pack & order validation routines; receive & organize new & replacement merchandise, report shortages & damages to vendors; prepare & upload package weights & addresses to online postage vendor, print mailing labels & affix; deliver packages to USPS & UPS; prepare customized shipment notification e-mails for customers; answer inter-company e-mails & take phone orders.

As Convention Lead: prepare & oversee loading/unloading of convention stock & fixtures to/from moving truck; transport of stock & fixtures to/from convention location; lead on-site team in unloading of stock & fixtures and construction of convention booth; lead on-site sales team in performing sales & customer service during convention hours, including merchandise re-stocking & cash wrap operations; lead end-of-show breakdown of convention booth; prepare Excel spreadsheet breakdown of convention revenue & costs; prepare final bank deposit.

As Director of Marketing: perform marketing outreach to comics retail community for company-owned relaunch of Chaos! Comics characters Evil Ernie, Purgatori, and Chastity; editorial liaison with publishing licensee Devil's Due; prepare order solicitation text for Diamond Comic Distributors PREVIEWS magazine; advisor on creative team selection for Evil Ernie relaunch.

Store Manager, Coliseum of Comics; Kissimmee, FL, 2001-2002

Responsibilities similar to those detailed in the Heroes & Dragons entry below, and highlighted by successful & lucrative introduction of WizKids HEROCLIX game into company's product mix. Coliseum of Comics is regarded as one of the top retailers of comic-books & graphic novels in the North American "direct" (non-returnable) market.

Store Manager, Heroes & Dragons; Columbia, SC, 1994-2001

Assigned to maintain & track diverse product selection into store inventory, including graphic novels & Games Workshop games; display & organize department product for sales floor; order department merchandise, track sales and profit & loss, develop & regulate budgets; implement, maintain & regulate 250-400 customer database; provide courteous & competent customer service to established & new clientele; create, write, & edit DRAGON'S BREATH store newsletter; track accounts payable, regulate company cash flow; hire/fire, train & review employees.

EDUCATION

Graceland University, Lamoni, IA — Bachelor of Arts in Popular Culture, 1993

SKILLS

Retail Management, Customer Service, Retail Sales, Inventory Management, Inventory Control, Marketing, Merchandising, Scheduling, Loss Prevention, Coaching, Event Management, Writing, Editing, Social Networking, Twitter, Excel, Word, UPS

AWARDS

During my watch, Heroes & Dragons was a Will Eisner "Spirit of Comics Retailing" Award nominee (and finalist) in 1998 and 2001.