Tom and Ren Boeing transformed their love of zines into a fully fledged business, one focused on bringing the hobby’s local community together.
Zines are self-published, small-circulation magazines, comics or newsletters that include text, original artwork and other unique characteristics. According to Tom, the appeal of zines is that they can be about anything, offering the author a blank canvas to create.
“A zine is a small DIY publication,” he said. “Usually, it’s made pretty scrappy, it’s made as cheaply as possible, with the goal of getting your ideas or your art out to people. It can be cartoons, text-based, poetry, short stories or interviews. It can be photography. So there’s really not a like specific it has to be this to be a zine.”
Over the years, Tom and Ren developed a love for the art form. They traveled across the American Midwest, from Indianapolis, Chicago and Columbus, to attend zine festivals, where they met and collaborated with other creators.
In 2019, Tom and Ren founded Zinezinnati Fest, a festival for local zine makers and enthusiasts in Cincinnati. When Greater Cincinnati zine community members sought a permanent home, the Boeings decided to create it themselves. Ren told LINK nky that there wasn’t a space for the community to meet regularly at the time.
“There really wasn’t a store that fills the spot in this area,” she said.
The couple envisioned a “third space” for the community, a physical location outside of one’s home where people congregate, socialize and build community. If home is a “first space” and the workplace is a “second space,” then places like bars, cafes, and bookstores are third spaces.
Their main goal was to foster community. The duo envisioned a storefront where small and independent publishers could freely spend time, work on their projects, and share space with other creatives.
“One of our visions for the space is to be a third space for people,” Tom said. “We think so often with spaces, you have to come and spend money to do anything. While, you know, we are a business, it’s important for us to be able to offer a space for people to just go, do something for free and not have to worry about spending money.”
In 2023, the Boeings founded indie Northern Kentucky, which they call ink. The shop is an independent small bookstore that primarily sells zines. Initially, the store operated inside Petri’s Floral in Bellevue. The shared space allowed people unfamiliar with zines to gain exposure to the art form.
The venture proved successful, so much so that the Boeings eventually sought a larger space. They found one at 507 6th Ave. in Dayton. ink opened its new store in November 2024.
The store uses a consignment business model, allowing creators to display their products in exchange for a cut of each sale.
Upon entering the store, customers are greeted by a wall of zines sourced from local and regional creators. In a separate room, zine creators have access to a variety of art and printing supplies. Ultimately, the couple hopes the storefront will draw intrigue from not only the zine community but also members of the public who are interested in art and socializing.
So far, the business has been challenging but fulfilling, Tom said. The couple juggles running ink with the responsibilities of being full-time parents and employees.
“We have two kids, and we do the store, and it’s very difficult, but we have a great time,” Tom said. “We meet so many awesome people, and we’ve made so many good friends that this doesn’t feel like a burden even though we have so much other things going on.”
Ren said they feel like they’ve created a successful third space for the community. Their next goal is to focus on growth by hosting live events at the store or spreading awareness of zines through social media or word-of-mouth.
“We’ve had a really great reaction from the community, where people are super on board, and I feel like we’re on board with where we want to go,” Ren said. “We want to this open door space where we can have people come in and work on their stuff.’