November · Bologna, festival circuit venues
For the independent comic artists and illustrators presenting their work at the Bologna comics festival, the small and medium graphic novel publishing houses that animate the meeting calendar, the comic and illustration schools bringing students to the workshops, the art galleries and independent bookshops hosting the exhibitions and signing sessions, the editorial offices of comics criticism magazines and specialised press, the school publishers setting up the comics education counter, the twin festivals of the European independent comics circuit, the sponsors of local culture and publishing — branded shoppers for the public of the days, limited editions of signed prints in coordinated packaging, coordinated gadgets for the meetings with the authors, gifts for the schools attending the workshops and for the twin festival delegations, coordinated materials for the independent bookshops and the specialised press offices — delivered in time for the opening of the BilBOlbul days in Bologna.
BilBOlbul — the international independent comics festival organised in Bologna by Hamelin Associazione Culturale — brings together independent comic artists and illustrators from Italy and abroad, small and medium graphic novel publishing houses, comic and illustration schools, art galleries and independent bookshops, the editorial offices of comics criticism magazines and specialised press, school publishers, twin festivals of the European independent comics circuit, sponsors of local culture and publishing, and a broad public of visitors who pass through the days between exhibitions, signing sessions, author meetings, school workshops, criticism round tables and awards.
For the comic artists, the indie publishers, the comic schools, the art galleries, the independent bookshops, the specialised press editorial offices and the BilBOlbul sponsors, Corp-Merch.IT manages from its operating hub the full chain for the different audience categories: intake of the comic artist’s, indie publisher’s, comic school’s, art gallery’s, bookshop’s or editorial office’s master graphic files (AI, EPS, PDF/X-4 with CMYK images at 300 dpi, FOGRA39 colour profile for print, Pantone for textiles), adaptation for the different personalisation techniques (water-based screen printing on GOTS-certified organic cotton for the coordinated uniforms of the comic artists on the festival days, hot foil on FSC-certified paper for the festival booklets, laser engraving on chestnut wood for the labels of the limited-edition signed prints, computerised embroidery on cotton and linen for the bookshop aprons, sublimation printing on cotton for the public’s tote bags, UV printing on PVC for the exhibition and award signs), physical pre-production sample with Pantone colour map and technical sheet, production on Italian supply chains (Como textile for the cotton of the coordinated uniforms, Tuscan organic cotton for the public’s tote bags, Collodi wood for the labels and small decorative objects of the limited editions, Fabriano paper for the festival booklets, Faenza ceramics for the tasting bowls, Maniago steel for the small metalwork, Empoli glass for the limited-edition jars, Padova for the technical paper of the limited-edition slipcases) and delivery to the art gallery, the independent bookshop, the comic school, the Hamelin consolidation warehouse or the specialised press office on slots confirmed by the festival calendar.
Independent comic artists and illustrators presenting their work at the festival look for coordinated uniforms for the festival days (shirt in GOTS-certified organic cotton with computerised embroidery of the comic artist’s name and country of origin, coordinated apron for the signing sessions and dedications, sturdy fabric shopper, peaked cap for the peak hours of the exhibition days), branded shoppers for the public of the days, limited editions of signed prints in coordinated packaging, small coordinated objects (magnets with the comic characters, illustrated postcards of the comic, enamel pins of the graphic novels). Small and medium graphic novel publishing houses animating the meeting calendar need editorial calendar booklets on FSC-certified paper, coordinated shopper, graphic novel bookmarks. Comic and illustration schools bringing students to the workshops need educational kits of comics (small booklets of comics techniques, coordinated shopper, annotation notebooks), festival booklets on FSC-certified paper, coordinated uniforms for the teachers. Art galleries and independent bookshops hosting the exhibitions and signing sessions want hall programmes, exhibition booklets, bookshop shoppers, small coordinated objects for the ticket counters. Twin festival delegates from the European independent comics circuit want coordinated gift kits, limited-edition signed prints, packaging coordinated with the institutional colours of the twin festival. Comics criticism magazine and specialised press editorial offices want coordinated gadgets for their press office days.
Most comic artists, indie publishers, comic schools, art galleries, independent bookshops and specialised press editorial offices of BilBOlbul coordinate their operations from their Italian seat, but launching a coordinated collection of comic artist uniforms, public shoppers or limited-edition signed prints requires a district supply chain that our hub can orchestrate across the Italian territory. Como for the cotton of the coordinated uniforms, Scandicci for the leather of the bookshop aprons, Maniago for the steel of the metalwork, Empoli for the glass of the limited editions, Faenza for the ceramics of the tasting bowls, Padova for the technical paper of the slipcases, Fabriano for the paper of the festival booklets, Collodi for the wood objects of the labels and the educational kits: the hub lets us consolidate the client’s graphic files, run a physical pre-production sample across Italian supply chains and dispatch the lot to the art gallery, the independent bookshop, the comic school or the Hamelin consolidation warehouse on a short courier window, twenty-four to forty-eight hours from the national territory. For programmes that involve a twin festival delegation (twinning between BilBOlbul and the independent comics festivals of Angoulême, Lucerne, Barcelona, Lisbon and Berlin) we manage bilingual materials (Italian and English at minimum) and, on request, full multilingual release with translations aligned with ISO 17100.
The BilBOlbul window is spread out and must be planned with a calendar that includes the art gallery and independent bookshop set-up days opening the previous Wednesday, the Thursday author welcome ceremony, the Friday and Saturday meeting days, the gallery circuit exhibitions of the following week, the comic school workshops on Thursday and Friday, the Monday criticism round tables and the grand finale of awards and signing sessions the following Saturday. For comic artists, indie publishers, comic schools, art galleries, independent bookshops and specialised press editorial offices the gap between confirmation of the festival graphic line and the opening of the meeting days is normally below ten weeks, and any object that must be at the art gallery, independent bookshop, comic school or Hamelin consolidation warehouse by the first day must be closed and dispatched at least one week before opening. We work backwards from that moment: production must close two to three weeks before the welcome ceremony; the courier slot must be booked for the Wednesday or Thursday of the festival week; the addressee list must be finalised at the same time as the meeting-day calendar is confirmed; the specific edition details (year, edition number, invited authors) only add a small reprint to an already-produced neutral graphic base.
For Italian clients with a VAT number the invoice is issued through the Italian Revenue Agency’s Sistema di Interscambio (SdI) with 22% VAT applied in EUR; reduced rates of 4%, 5% or 10% are available for the product categories that allow them (publishing, art objects, traditional territory products). Reverse charge for intra-EU buyers registered in VIES, split payment for public administration bodies, recipient code or PEC for electronic invoice delivery. For clients in scope of CSRD reporting (D.Lgs. 125/2024, transposing Directive (EU) 2022/2464) we provide a sustainability sheet per order with Scope 3 CO₂e estimates under the GHG Protocol Corporate Value Chain on the internal legs and from the named production supply chains.
Shirt in GOTS-certified organic cotton or cotton-linen blend with computerised embroidery of the comic artist name and country of origin, coordinated apron for the signing sessions and dedications, sturdy fabric shopper, peaked cap for the peak hours of the exhibition days, metal badge for the larger uniforms of the comic artists.
Limited-edition signed prints with coordinated packaging and hot-foil printing of the comic artist name and the graphic novel title, FSC-certified paper labels, technical-paper slipcases for the festival print selections and for the kits of the twin festivals.
Faenza ceramic bowls, Tuscan organic cotton shoppers, Scandicci leather small goods, Maniago steel accessories, limited editions of graphic novel bookmarks, packaging coordinated with the institutional colours of the participating comic artists.
Illustrated booklets of comics techniques printed on FSC-certified paper, organic cotton shoppers for the class kits, bilingual agenda, single-stitched notebook for the comic workshop annotations, limited edition of a signed print of a festival comic artist.
Before launching production, graphics, quantities per recipient, packaging and named receiving point must be confirmed. The final delivery address is defined in the weeks leading up to BilBOlbul against the calendar issued by Hamelin or the organising committee responsible for the festival: the festival circuit venues often have narrow access streets and regulated vehicle gates; the art galleries and independent bookshops of the historic centre have their own delivery hours that must be coordinated with the contacts; the comic and illustration schools have loading windows coordinated with the school contacts; the Hamelin consolidation warehouse is often decentralised from the centre and must be reached with suitable couriers. Bologna’s historic-centre ZTL zones condition courier access, which is why most teams opt for early-morning or post-19:30 deliveries, when heavy vehicles are again allowed in ZTL areas of the centre.
For an Italian programme routed via the national hub, deliveries are consolidated and shipped to the art gallery, the independent bookshop, the comic school or the Hamelin consolidation warehouse with twenty-four to forty-eight-hour windows via BRT, SDA, GLS or DHL Express Italia, by appointment for sites requiring telephone pre-notice. For programmes above 1,000 pieces we propose appointment delivery with telephone pre-notice and, on request, on-site set-up by our staff at the art gallery or the Hamelin consolidation warehouse. For materials requiring controlled environmental conditions (limited-edition signed prints, limited-edition glassware) we coordinate transport with climate-controlled specialised partners. For educational kits destined for the comic schools and welcome packs for the twin festival delegations we handle multilingual labelling (Italian, English, French, German, Spanish) and packaging in tamper-evident envelopes with a bilingual packing list addressed to the recipient.
Eight to ten weeks is the safest window for limited-edition signed prints, coordinated uniforms for comic artists on the festival days, signing session and dedication gadgets and educational kits for the comic schools. Tighter programmes are possible only after stock, print methods and access to the festival art gallery or independent bookshop have been confirmed.
Only after Hamelin or the organising committee has confirmed the loading window, the gate access and the named recipient. Limited-edition signed prints and packaging require specific packing conditions to be agreed in advance.
Yes. Comic artist uniforms, limited-edition signed prints, signing session and dedication gadgets and educational kits for the comic schools can be packed and labelled as separate lots, each tied to its audience and delivery point.
No. Corp-Merch.IT is an external, independent B2B supplier that helps comic artists, indie publishers, comic schools, art galleries, independent bookshops and specialised press editorial offices prepare their merch for BilBOlbul. It does not organise, sponsor or represent Hamelin Associazione Culturale or the festival circuit.
Corp-Merch.IT is an external, independent B2B supplier to the comic artists, indie publishers, comic schools, art galleries, independent bookshops, specialised press editorial offices, twin festival delegates and BilBOlbul organising committees. This page helps teams prepare their merch for the festival; it does not represent Hamelin Associazione Culturale, the organising committee, the comic artists or any sponsor of the event.