About Alter Ego Comics in Lima, Ohio
About Alter Ego Comics
This Isn't a Warehouse.
It's My Life's Work.
My name is Marc Bowker, and I've been obsessed with comics and pop culture collectibles since before it was cool to admit that.
In 2003, I started Alter Ego Comics out of my home because I genuinely couldn't imagine doing anything else. I didn't have a business plan that would impress an MBA. What I had was a deep love for this hobby, a belief that collectors deserved to be treated like people — not just order numbers — and a stubborn conviction that a small business could compete on something the big guys can't manufacture: authenticity.
Twenty-plus years later, we're still here. Still family-owned. Still operated by fans, for fans.
Why We're Different
There are a lot of places to buy a Hot Toys figure or a Sideshow collectible. Here's why collectors keep coming back to Alter Ego:
We care about the box as much as you do
Every sixth scale figure ships double-boxed at no extra charge. You're not spending $300 to find it damaged on your doorstep.
You'll talk to a real person
When you call us, you get someone who knows the product, loves the hobby, and actually wants to help. That's not a feature. That's just how we operate.
We've earned our reputation
Named Small Business of the Year by the Lima Chamber of Commerce. Voted Best of the Region by readers of The Lima News — twice. We didn't buy those distinctions. We earned them.
Our rewards program is the real deal
Earn 2% back on every purchase, with no restrictions and the potential to earn triple rewards. It adds up fast when you're building a collection.
More Than a Store
Running a business for over two decades teaches you things no class can. But the most important lessons I've learned haven't come from the industry — they've come from the harder parts of life.
In 2016, I had a nervous breakdown. I was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder and OCD. It was one of the most difficult seasons of my life, and also, in time, one of the most clarifying.
I've been open about that experience — at service clubs, at conferences, over cups of coffee — because I believe it matters for people to hear that it's okay to not be okay. That struggle doesn't disqualify you. That you can build something meaningful and be human at the same time.
What came out of that season was a commitment: to show up as the best version of myself, moment to moment, in service to something bigger than myself.
That commitment has shaped how I lead this business, how I treat our customers, and how I try to move through the world.
In 2025, I gave a TEDx Talk — Becoming the Hero of Your Own Story — because I believe every one of us has a story worth telling, and the courage to keep writing it.
▶ Watch the TEDx TalkI share all of this not to make the About page of a collectibles store feel heavier than it needs to be — but because I think it explains why Alter Ego is the way it is. The heroes we love in comics are the ones who get knocked down and get back up. Who keep going when it's hard. Who fight for something beyond themselves.
That's not just a theme on our shelves. It's a way of living. And it's what we try to bring to every order, every customer, every day.
Come See Us
Collector-owned and operated since 2003.