We are very excited to announce that our commencement speaker this May 4th will be Steve Geppi, founder and CEO of Diamond Comic Distributors.
A native of Little Italy in Baltimore Maryland, Geppi founded Diamond Comic Distributors in 1982. Initially a small local storefront in Baltimore, Geppi has grown Diamond into an empire. They are the largest English language comic book distributor in the world and are the exclusive distributors for Marvel, D.C., Image, Archie, and Dark Horse among other major brands.
Before there was Diamond, Geppi worked for a time as a member of the United States Postal Service, switching gears in the mid-seventies to become an entrepreneur. An avid lover of comics and passionate about sharing that love with the world, he took a risk and opened his first comic store, Geppi’s Comic World in the basement of a house on Edmondson Avenue*.
Geppi has been an active part of the Baltimore and D.C. community for many years. He formerly owned and ran Geppi’s Entertainment Museum (GEM) in Baltimore, which housed an epic collection of comics, story boards, and collectibles. Upon the museum’s closure last year, Geppi donated it’s over 3,000 items to the Library of Congress. It was the famous library’s largest ever donation of comics and through it you can still access Geppi’s comic collection today.
According to the Diamond Comic Distributors website, “What started as one man’s hobby, with only a single warehouse and 17 retail customers, has evolved into the Diamond of today: the world’s largest distributor of English-language comics, graphic novels and pop-culture related merchandise.”
“…Our Founder and current President & CEO, Steve Geppi, doesn't believe in second-place efforts. This idea goes beyond the vast product selection, competitive discounts and pioneering services which Diamond offers. It goes to caring about the industry and the relationships we’ve cultivated in over 30 years of business.
Above all, Diamond aims to treat its customers with one resounding quality: respect.”
We cannot wait to welcome Mr. Geppi to campus.
For more information about graduation, including how to apply, ordering your cap and gown, diploma frames, visitor information and more please visit our website at: https://www.captechu.edu/current-students/graduating-students. We will be taking tons of photos throughout the day. Find them and help us to document your experience with the hashtag #CapTechU2019.
* Information sourced from the Baltimore Sun - https://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/bs-fe-geppis-20180529-story.html