Today we’d like to introduce you to Eli Roberts.
Hi Eli, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
As a kid, I wasn’t much of a reader. It wasn’t that I couldn’t read or found reading difficult, there just wasn’t anything I was really interested in reading. The literature that I was exposed to in elementary and middle school always involved a beloved animal, pig, spider, dog, or cat dying at the end, and I just wasn’t drawn to reading those types of stories.
One weekend, my family went down to visit my grandparents who always gave us $5 to spend at the corner 7-11. My brothers and I walked went down, and I picked up a few comics, Amazing Spider-Man, Marvel Tales, Detective Comics, and a couple of others. When we returned, I started reading them and absolutly devoured them. I asked my grandparents for another $5, so I could go back and get more. Everyone was pretty shocked and relieved that I could indeed read. My grandparents held reading and books in high esteem, so encourage me to keep reading comics. They even started a pull list at a local comic shop for me. Every few weeks, they’d go and pick up the comics for when my family came back for another visit, and I’d pretty much spend the whole time reading comics. It pretty much kept going from there. I read comics, and from comics, I branched out to novels, mostly Stephen King at the time.
I continued reading and collecting comics on through high school and college. I graduated from Texas Tech in 1997, and, after a couple of fits and starts, I went back to school and earned my English/Language Arts teaching certification. I taught 7th grade Language Arts for the next 12 years, and I always had a box or spinner rack of comics available for students to read in class. Later, I transitioned to a position as an ELA Instructional Coach for the next 10 years. After the Covid shutdown, I was feeling burned out with teaching, and I decided to try my luck as a digital markerting specialist. It was a pretty cool time. I worked for a tech company in downtown Austin and got to see how “the other lives.” Then I got to experience a tech layoff. I returned to the classroom for a short bit, but I found that my heart wasn’t in it anymore.
I applied for jobs in a bunch of different areas, but I couldn’t get anything to stick. After a few months of job hunting and not getting anywhere, I thought, “If I want a job, I may have to make my own.” When I started looking at what I liked and what I wanted to do, the idea of a starting my own comic shop started to percolate. With the support of family and friends, I was able to find a retail space, do the build out, and open my own comic shop. And that’s what I’ve been working on for the last year and couple of months. It’s been a blast sharing comics with the local community and meeting all the different people who come into the shop. The community has been amazingly supportive. I feel like I really lucked out.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
For the most part, it’s been a pretty smooth road. With all the time I spent in education, I was pretty familiar with how fast local governments and contractors move, so delays in permitting or other bureucratic hiccups were expected, and I tried to deal with those as objectively as possible. The biggest challenge I faced so far is just creating awareness that there’s a comic shop in Leander, Texas. My brief tenure in digital marketing showed me the reach and value of building and nuturing online communities; however, translating that to the physical realm has been a bit of challenge. However, once people do find us, they’re excited to come into the shop, look around, and tell others about the store. To help build awareness, I try to produce different types of social media posts featuring Top Picks, previews of new comics, and other short form video content. My online audience is slowly and consistently increasing, and I enjoy making the content and sharing information about old and new comics to the public, so while it’s challenge to make sure I consistenly have stuff ready, it’s a challenge I enjoy.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Adventures in Ink?
There are a couple of things that I really like about running a comic store. Firstly, I like the idea of controlling my own professional destiny. The success or failure of the comic shop rests squarely on my shoulders. I control my success or failure. I’m not at the mercy of a black box HR algorithm or a company’s stock price fluctuations.
Also, I have always been a huge fan of comic books. The best thing about owning a shop is getting to spread the word about comics to people. I enjoy talking with customers about new titles, making recommendations, seeing the new artwork and basically spreading the comic book gospel to new, old, and lapsed comic readers. I really see comics as an art form, like Jazz or the Blues and there’s so much more to it than just what’s on the page.
Lastly, I want Adventures in Ink to a “third place” where people can sit, read comics, share with others in a safe place. I’ve found that many people are looking for connection and looking for a place to share thier passion and interests whether it’s over a game of Magic: The Gathering or discussing the latest Superman storyline.
And, as corny as it may sound, I still find a lot of comfort and inspiration in superheroes.
What makes you happy?
I think what makes me happiest is when someone discovers comics for the first time or discovers a new title. I have a customer who works a high-stress job. He initially came in with his kids to get comics for them, but he picked a couple of for himself just to see what they were like. The next day he came back and picked up some of the previous issues. He kept coming back and starting picking up different titles. He asked for recommendations, and I was able to suggest some titles that he might like. Now, he’s one of my top customers. He told me that with all the noise of work, that being able to sit down and read a comic for 15 minutes or so and not get a break from the mental and physical load of work has been one the best things he’s done for himself in years. Seeing kids get excited about a Sonic comic book or a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle comic is rewarding as well. Also, I’ve had several customers make new friendships and relationships that have continued outside the comic shop.
Pricing:
- New Comics – $4.99 – $8.99
- Graphic Novels – $9.99 – $34.99
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.aiicomics.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adventures_in_ink/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aiicomics
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elimroberts/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Adventures_In_Ink
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@adventuresinink
