As of 2019, the "Supercon" trademark only applies to Florida Supercon. All other conventions have been renamed GalaxyCon.[5][9] Florida Supercon, held in the Miami and Fort Lauderdale metro areas, was sold to ReedPop in early 2019.[10]
History
The first Supercon was organized by founder Mike Broder in late 2006 at the Ramada Hollywood Beach Resort in Hollywood, Florida, called Florida Supercon.[11][12] He was looking to bring a large scale convention to south Florida.[13] Another event, Anime Supercon, took place in Fort Lauderdale five months later.[14] Estimated attendances at each event averaged around 2,000 people.[11][12][14] As success grew, other conventions were added throughout the Fort Lauderdale and Miami metro areas.
An attempt was made in November 2008 to hold a longstanding Supercon outside of Florida, in Atlanta, Georgia, but it was not as prosperous as the Florida events.[15] Another try did not take place until July 2017 with Raleigh Supercon in North Carolina, replacing the promotional Wizard World Raleigh Comic Con which eventually moved to nearby Winston-Salem after the 2015 event.[16] Raleigh Supercon 2017 drew in an estimated 30,000 people for the weekend.[2][4][17] Super Conventions later acquired the former Derby City Comic Con in Louisville, Kentucky, which was re-branded as Louisville Supercon.[18] The inaugural event took place in November 2018.[19]
Two recent conventions, Animate! Florida (formerly known as Animate! Miami) and Paradise City Comic Con (formerly known as Magic City Comic Con[20]), were discontinued in 2018 so Super Conventions could concentrate on their three Supercon events.[2][3] Both of those had taken place in Miami.
Sale of Florida Supercon and convention name changes
On March 11, 2019, it was announced that Broder sold Florida Supercon and the "Supercon" trademark to ReedPop of Norwalk, Connecticut.[10] The company owns a number of conventions around the world, including New York Comic Con and MCM London Comic Con.[10] Management for the events in Raleigh and Louisville will remain the same under Broder, but are renamed as GalaxyCon.[9][21] Also added are GalaxyCon events in Richmond, Virginia, and Minneapolis, Minnesota.[9] Florida Supercon, now managed by ReedPop, will continue to have its annual event in early July.[5]
Notes: As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, GalaxyCon Raleigh was rescheduled for July 29 – August 1, 2021.[44] In April 2020, the convention announced that due to economic conditions and issues with the venue, GalaxyCon would not be returning to Louisville for 2020.[45]
^Fernandez, Elizabeth (26 June 2015). "Mike Broder: The Super Geek Behind Supercon". TheNewTropic.com. Archived from the original on 26 September 2015. Retrieved 28 July 2020. It started as a small gathering of Superman fans, hence the name, but Florida Supercon has exploded in popularity, outgrowing venue after venue until it finally landed at the Miami Beach Convention Center, where this weekend close to 45,000 guests are expected to attend.
^Overton, Rodney (15 July 2017). "Nearly 20,000 Expected at First-Ever Raleigh Supercon This Weekend". WNCN. Raleigh, North Carolina. Archived from the original on 29 July 2020. Retrieved 29 July 2020. Inside the convention center, hundreds of vendors lined up to sell their products to eager customers. It's a unique opportunity for entrepreneurs to reach a select clientele of nearly 20,000 people who are expected to flock to Raleigh this weekend.
^Broder, Mike (24 July 2020). "GalaxyCon Raleigh Announcement". GalaxyCon.com. Archived from the original on 12 July 2020. Retrieved 29 July 2020. Due to the current situation regarding Covid-19 we will be postponing our July 30 – August 2, 2020 GalaxyCon Raleigh event. The new event dates for GalaxyCon Raleigh are December 10–13, 2020.
