The Book Industry Charitable (Binc) Foundation will give two scholarships to comic book store owners and employees to attend the ComicsPRO industry meeting scheduled for February 20-22, 2025, in Glendale, CA. The $750 scholarships can be used for travel, lodging, meals, and wage replacement, and ComicsPRO will cover the cost of registration for the event. The application deadline is Tuesday, December 31, 2024 at 5 PM ET.

“We are proud to continue our support for comic retailers with this professional development scholarship that provides comic people access to networking and education opportunities,” Binc’s Executive Director Pam French said.

The applicant’s store must be in the US or US territories. The store can “be either a retail bricks and mortar store owned by an entity, a substantial portion of whose revenue is derived from the bricks and mortar sale of books/comics, or mobile or pop-up store with an ongoing overhead investment that is open to the general public and maintains an annual average of 30 hours per week with an employee present,” per the application criteria.

Applicants must be a regular part-time or full-time employee or owner of the store. They must be currently employed with 90 days of continuous employment at the shop. Applicants who are not the store owner must discuss the application with the owner prior to applying.

“We really appreciate the two scholarships for the comic industry meeting,” ComicsPRO Executive Director Marco Davanzo said. “The scholarships will help bring people to the meeting that might not have been able to go. Binc is an amazing force for good in this industry. The fine people at Binc are relentless in helping owners and employees of comic book stores with unforeseen emergencies. ComicsPRO is extremely thankful for their work!”