Picture this: A wildly horny porn enthusiast, desperate for a rousing session of self-abuse, drives to his local adult bookstore. Sweat popping on his brow, he approaches the magazine rack. With economy in mind, he selects a pre-wrapped pack of two magazines that are a few months old. Who cares? Those forever-young ladies within will stay fresh until the paper turns to dust.
He drives home, dreaming of the one-dimensional action inside the neatly wrapped package. In his bedroom, barely able to contain himself, he rips open the plastic, the publications tumble onto the bed, and our hero is in masturbatory heaven.
But, just for a second, let’s stop and ponder the now-shredded, humble plastic wrap lying on the floor, awaiting the trashcan. Somebody had to enshrine those sex mags. And, though consumers probably rarely give it a thought, that somebody is the Komar Company.
For some 35 years, the dedicated folks at Komar have been quietly purchasing “old” (usually less than a year) copies of adult publications, selecting which will go best with which, hermetically sealing them in the finest, see-through plastic, insuring that said mags stay clean and neat for your sexual delight. Let’s delve into this underappreciated world with Mort, who became president of Komar 20 years ago, who reveals the concern’s roots.
“I had a partner who used to sell comic books,” said Mort. “Then he recognized that people wanted to buy more sex mags. I bought half his business 20 years ago, Then I bought the other half 6 years ago. I think he's the father of the magazine pack business in America.”
So, how does it work, exactly?
“We buy from publishers around the world,” revealed Mort. “New, old magazines. Then we repackage them in packs. We make them up. Depending on what we do, it’s two, three and four in a pack. We also make a seven pack.”
Komar gets their magazines from publishers, publishers who have grown to trust the company. You see, another integral element in the Komar tradition can be described in one word: integrity. Mort provides an example.
“Most publishers clean out their warehouses in 6 months to a year. I got a phone call from a publisher yesterday and then one this morning that went like this: ‘Mort, do you want some magazines?' 'Bill, what do you have?' 'Same as last time. Same deal?' 'Yes. OK, I'll take it.’
“I have never signed a contract; it's been a handshake over the telephone. My word is very important. You only get a chance to take advantage of someone one time. Sure we make mistakes. But we try to keep those at a minimum. We try to live up to our word; that's very important.”
Though Komar has many long-term relationships with suppliers, the company is always on the lookout for more, always looking to broaden their offerings to customers.
“Variety is the name of the game,” agreed Mort. “We try to be very competitive, and we’re always looking for new suppliers. We find them by word of mouth. They find us, or we find them. We travel the world. I go to Europe. They look for us; we look for them. People are looking for us. We get calls most days, or many days, that someone has a warehouse full, whether they be domestic, or foreign.”
Komar’s own facility is a smut lover’s wet dream.
“We have 100,000 square feet in this building,” said Mort, referring to where he was calling from. “Probably no less than two, maybe three million magazines at all times. We have another warehouse someplace else that’s 40,000 square feet. I'm proud to say that we are the only authorized distributor of Club magazines as remainder, and Score magazines as remainder.”
As others in the industry would no doubt concur, that is indeed something to be proud of. Another tip of the prideful hat must go to the skill with which Komar puts the magazine selections together. Is there a certain philosophy to it?
“It's interesting you should say that,” said Mort. “In the industry, we recognize, we’re all male, but you may like the look of the big boob, I may like the look of the rear end. We separated the magazines by class. Specialty packs is what we refer to them. We do a black, we do an Asian, we do Spanish, we do young, we do an older women pack.” (Komar also offers gay, tranny, and fetish packs).
Just as a vintner ages fine wine, so, too, does Mort age his porn. It all happens in his smaller location.
“That's where we keep the merchandise that we age for several publishers,” he offered. “They want it to be at least six months old. They tell me when it's OK to release. Magazines are sold as guaranteed sale for you as a storekeeper, for you as a convenience store, and airport, or they're returned to the local wholesaler, who returns it to the publisher. Unless I have handshake agreements with several publishers to pick up the magazines and age them from distributors around the country, we repackage it and send it out, all over.”
With some three dozen dedicated employees, Komar is — and always has been — a machine of stability. The company is always growing; Mort provides an overview.
“It feeds my family and a bunch of others,” Mort stated. “As good as we are, that's how much more we need to do to stay on top of what's going on. We're going to have an online buying site for our customers. They'll be given a coded name. We're trying to keep up with the times. We're going into home parties. We do DVDs. We sell DVDs with magazines in a pack. We make a party pack with a toy, a DVD and a magazine — in a clamshell.”
Hang on, folks, he doesn’t mean the crustacean. “Clamshell” is simply industry jargon for a plastic container.
“We've gone through some expense to have a clamshell made for us, and that's for security for the storekeeper,” he said. “Many of them had complained for a long time that a customer could come in with a small penknife, cut the bag or the pack, and slide the DVD out. Nobody would know. We were the innovator of the specialty pack. Again, what's very important, too, is we like the customer to buy what we make. Many customers prefer a particular title in a pack, and we'll do that for them. Or they say, leave something out. Or add this. Or price it this way. Or your barcode won't work with mine. And all of the above.”
“It's an exciting business; it is a business,” Mort continued. “We try to take care of our help, as well as our customers. My daddy didn't give me this business, I worked for it. We try to treat people the way we would want to be treated, whether it's help in the warehouse or it's those customers who are on the telephone right now.”
Good thing to know, as that could be you.
For more information, go to komarcompany.com, or phone 410.235.2200 or 800.486.6247. Fax is 410.235.1911.
