Covert Comics & Collectibles

Covert Comics & Collectibles is a large collectibles shop in downtown Foley, Alabama, with about 5,000 square feet of retail space and a stock that runs well past cards: comic books, statues, video games, vinyl records and vintage toys share the floor with Pokémon, Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh! and sports cards. It suits the collector who wants to browse several hobbies in one stop, and the player or seller who wants a store that both sells singles and takes trades.

What's on the shelves

Trading cards are one department among many, but a substantial one. The Pokémon selection rotates and covers singles, sealed product, graded slabs and accessories. Sports cards run from vintage to modern, with singles, packs and signed memorabilia stocked as a constant. Magic: The Gathering and Yu-Gi-Oh! are carried as well.

Around the card cases, the store stocks comic books, sports memorabilia, Dungeons & Dragons, video games, music memorabilia, statues, Funko Pops, action figures, Transformers, G.I. Joe and Star Wars items. A record shop called The Yellow Submarine operates inside the Foley store, selling vinyl and other music items.

Buying and trading

The store buys and trades collectibles. Anyone with items to sell contacts the store to set up a time for staff to look them over, rather than walking in cold with a binder.

Comic subscriptions

Comic readers can start a subscription box. Subscribed titles are set aside each week to buy at cover price on release day, whatever the shelf quantity, and out-of-town customers can have them shipped at regular intervals. Starting a box takes a name, a phone number, a credit or debit card and a list of titles. Issues begin arriving in about a month, since titles are ordered a month ahead. Payment happens at pickup or shipping. Ratio variants and one-per-store variants are handled case by case and are not sold at cover price.

Store policies

Online orders can be picked up at the Foley store at no charge. Pickup hours are 11 AM to 6 PM Monday through Saturday, and orders are ready within 1 to 2 business days. Shipped orders are processed in 2 to 3 business days, international shipping is not offered, and returns are accepted only when an item arrives in a condition other than described.

Hours and getting there

The store is at 107 S McKenzie St in Foley, three doors south of Highway 98. Street parking is available out front, and when it fills there is additional parking behind the building. Hours are below.

History

The business began as a comic shop in the back corner of a record shop in Fairhope, Alabama, tucked out of immediate view, which is where the name Covert came from. It grew into the current downtown Foley location. A second store is open at 28850 US Hwy 98, Suite 103, in Daphne, Alabama, with Wednesday through Saturday hours of 10 AM to 6 PM. The Yellow Submarine began in early 2022 as a separate sister store for vintage goods, drifted toward music and became a record store, then moved back inside Covert, so the business now has a record shop within a comic shop, where it started in reverse.

The local scene

Foley has several other stores for the hobby. Gamer's Domain and Action Game and Movie are both in Foley, and Hobbytown Foley is about 1.5 miles away. Nikkis Magickal Creations And More is about 2.4 miles away, also in Foley. Game Kastle in Orange Beach is about 8.3 miles away.