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Nerd Block Owes Diamond And Funko A Quarter Of A Million Each, And NYCC $150K
As expected by many, Nerd Block, the Canadian geek subscription service and its parent company Fan Blocks has filed for bankruptcy. As part of its filing, it has had to declare who it owes money to. And the results are surprising.
As well as call centres, banks, lawyers, real estate, telecommunications, shipping and the like, here are some familiar names – and what they are owed by Nerd Block. Here are some of the biggest amounts. Prices in Canadian dollars, so knock everything down by a fifth for the US dollar amount. Or two fifths for the UK sterling amount.
- Diamond Comic Distributors, monopoly comics distributor to the direct market, around $260,000
- Funko LLC , makers of the popular Funko POP vinyl toys, around $230,000
- Insight Editions, Californian licensed book publisher, around $230,000.
- Technosport, Canadian clothing manufacturer, around $230,000
- The Forecast Agency, Los Angeles based design and sales agency for life style apparel and accessory brands, around $200,000.
- Surreal Entertainment, collectible manufacturer, around $190,000
- Pennyroyal Studio, custom jewelry manufacturer, around $190,000
- Reed POP, organisers of NYCC and C2E2 conventions, around $146,000.
- Titan Comics, UK comics publisher and merchandise manufacturer, around $104,000
- Seedlings, Los Angeles DIY arts & craft kits
, retro games & toys for kids, around $93,000. - Simon & Schuster, book publisher, around $84,000.
- Cryptozoic Entertainment, gaming publisher, around $80,000
- National Geographic, around $73,000.
- Dark Horse Comics, comics publisher, owed around $70,000
- NECA, licensed collectible manufacturer, around $60,000
- Super7, toy manufacturer, around $41,000.
- Showtime, media broadcaster and licensor, around $38,000
- Entertainment Earth, licensed statue manufacturer, around $30,000
- Marvel Entertainment, around $32,000
- Raven Banner, game developer, around $32,000.
- Udon Studios, comic publisher, $28,000
- Ty Canada, toy manufacturer, around $24,000
- Space Goat, comics publisher, around $20,000
- Titan 1 Studios, comics publisher, around $11,000.
- Rebellion Publishing, British publisher of 2000AD, around $6500.
- Ramon Perez, comic book artist, around $2000
- And McFarlane Toys – a mere $236.
But there are plenty of less familiar names as well
- Asteroid Base / Toronto-based game developer, and creator of the game Lovers In A Dangerous Spacetime are owed around $15K.
- Chad Archibald, creator and co-owner of Canadian production company Black Fawn Films behind The Heretics is owed around $35K.
- Bleacher Creatures, creators of cuddly plush versions of stars in sports and entertainment, owed $55K.
- Barret Biggers, vector line artist and designer, owed around $800.
- Buckle Down, a New York belt shop, owed around $80,000.
- A Crowded Coop, Canadian PR Agency, around $350,000
- ByGeorge!, a Californian creative agency, around $385,000
- Eric Barnett, creator of Alien Toilet Monsters owed around $4000
- Fan Sets, manufacturer of licensed pins for Star Trek, DC Comics, Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts, Firefly, Valiant Comics and more owed around $22,000
- Concept One, bag manufacturers, around $35,000
- Copycats Media, CD and DVD manufacturer around $13,000
- Cole Corrugated Containers, who made the actual nerd blocks themselves, around $89,000
- Decalcomania, decal manufacturers, around $13,000
- Dune Craft, usual garden supplies, around $19,000
- Elephant-Gun, DC Comics licensed keychain manufacturer, around $22,000
- Fanwraps, licensed Star Wars vehicle decals around $5000.
- Fascinations, metal 3d model kits, around $30,000
- High Point Design, around $52,000
- HER Accessories, New York fashion store, around $25,000
- I Cup, geek-licensed kitchenware, around $91,000
- Import Dragon, toy importer, around $53,000
- Iron Gut, British creator of art prints, around $16,000
- Horror writer Joe Chianakas, around $4000
- JRC Toys, around $10,000
- Just Funky, collectible manufacturer, around $30,000.
- Level Up Wear, licensed clothing, around $38,000.
- Little Buddy, Nintendo plush distributor, around $15,000.
- MARRS Media, marketing and advertising, around $42,000.
- Max Wittert, comic book art designer, around $2600.
- Monster Factory, manufacturers of plush monster toys, around $35,000.
- MVD Entertainment, around $46,000.
- Novel Comics, around $1000
- NJ Croce, licensed bendable toys, around $19,000
- Pixelnest Studio, around $12.000.
- Planet Superheroes, around $88,000.
- PPW Toys around $17,000
- Rakuten Marketing, around $58,000
- RP Toys, around $11,000.
- Shout Factory, media publisher, around $21,000.
- Trends International, around $55,000.
- Tom Kennedy, artist, around $1300.
- Two Ghouls Press, around $6000
- Underground Toys, around $31,000.
- Unemployed Philosophers guild, collectible manufacturer, around $36,000.
And even Nerd Block executives are not immune
- Colin Aikman, COO of Fan Blocks, around $1800
- Eric Andrade, Co-Founder & Executive Chair, Nerd Block owe around $10,000
- Brian Bobechko, General manager of Fan Blocks until this month, around $4600.
- Mark Prospero, Licenseing Manager, around $4000
- Russ Montague, founder of Nerd Block, around $7000
But for those in line, the Toronto Dominion Bank has a million dollar loan secured before anyone else gets close…
