Chicago specialty store closes

The Chicago Daily Herald (archive link) reported that a local specialty store has closed down as the owners retired:

Whether it was mom-and-pop comic book store or a favorite place to eat, customers, as always, had to deal with the loss of some popular local businesses in the suburbs in 2025.

Fans of comic books and graphic novels lost a treasure in September, when Keith’s Komix owners Keith and Cathy Anderson closed their Schaumburg store and retired. The business had served customers for 30 years.

“This was a place of community,” said Joshua Winchester, a West Chicago resident who’s shopped at Keith’s since 2018. “For 30 years, Keith's Komix and Keith himself have been making the Chicago suburbs, our little corner of the world, a better, brighter and nerdier place to live.”

Well, that's sad alright. But while they may have just retired, it could still be a sign that specialty stores' influence is weakened, and any store that relies heavily upon products from Marvel/DC in their current state is certainly not improving the situation. Seriously, with all the bad directions the Big Two took since the turn of the century, I just don't understand why most specialty stores are still carrying their products. For now, I wish the proprietors well in their retirement.