Blogger: Wendy Lawton
Location: New York City
I don’t think it’s news to anyone that the brick and mortar bookstore is in trouble. We’ve seen the writing on the wall for several years as we identified the parallels between the publishing industry and the music industry. How many years ago did we watch the romantic comedy, You’ve Got Mail, that dealt with the challenge independent bookstores faced going up against the big box stores?
Lance, in one of our blog comments earlier this week said, “I am sad, however, because I’m a traditionalist. I love the printed word, and I love brick and mortar bookstores.” I’m guessing if we took a poll, we’d find most of us lined up behind Lance. I have such wonderful memories of the independent bookstores I’ve loved. And I not only love the physical book, I’ve been a book collector for years– always searching for that one special edition. If it were not for my independent antiquarian booksellers, I wouldn’t have half the library I have.
But nothing is static. Independent retailers of all kinds have been trying to stay afloat in a perfect storm. In a time when buyers are more concerned with finding bargains and having a vast array of choices than with loyalty and a sense of neighborhood, you add the internet with unlimited opportunities to shop night or day and the ability to price shop at the touch of a finger.
The worry for authors is that the independent bookstore has historically been the arbiter of taste. The indie bookseller is the one who guided us to try new authors and read outside our comfort zone. I’d hate to think how many of my favorite authors I may have missed had not my bookseller placed the book in my hands. Yes, the big bookstores try to do this but the passion level is different. Who will champion the amazing new authors?
Another concern happens when the big guys get too big. When I was in the toy industry we saw this with Toys R Us. Their purchase orders were so big that if they started ordering from a small manufacturer, that company would have to ramp up– hiring employees, buying supplies, securing bigger spaces– to meet the orders. Most would have to borrow capital in order to do it. If Toys R Us decided not to order for the next season it ofter meant bankruptcy to the small business. With huge buying capacity comes power. Do you know that if one of the buyers at the big box stores does not like the cover on your book, chances are it will be changed. Borders even had a brief foray into publishing their own branded books.
The bigger stores have a bottom line profit they need to make off every foot of shelf space. They know exactly how many turns they need for that space every year. (A turn is how many times a product is sold and replaced.) This is why there is such an emphasis on big authors, sure-thing authors. If you are a buyer who has to answer for your bottom line how comfortable are you going to be with risk? And new authors are risky.
Online booksellers have changed the face of book buying. Remember when Amazon first came on the scene? Did we even get what they were trying to do? And now, they are the most seamless way to buy books. One click, for goodness sake. And we’re not even addressing e-books and Kindle until tomorrow.
So do we have any solutions? I’ve long ago decided I can’t be the fix-it fairy for retail. My tendency is to want to save all the stores I love. I’ve found that my loyalty is not enough to affect the bottom line. The reality is that the innovative stores– the iconic stores– will survive this perfect storm. One of my favorite toy stores, Toy Village in Lansing Michigan, used to laugh about the doomsayers who predicted their demise when Toys R Us moved into town. As the owner, Betty Gillison later said, “Toys R Us opened and ended up closing and we are still here.” She celebrated her fiftieth anniversary in the same location last year.
I’m not ready to write the obituary for the independent bookstore just yet.
Coming back to the industrial revolution, people predicted that the age of handcrafting was over forever. Nope. We still treasure fine handcrafted things. I’m thinking that the bookstore may become the same kind of treasure– a gathering place of shared ideas with physical books becoming fine collectibles. Who knows?
Your turn: This week you’ve had some wonderful input. How about a brainstorm session? What aspects of the broken bookselling system worries you the most? Any futurists out there? How do you imagine the future? What might it mean for writers?
I imagine that bookstores won’t disappear, but they will become a smaller part of the book-selling business and that e-books will take a much larger role. I also think that authors and publishers will have to find additional innovative ways to market books instead of relying on shelf time in a book store.
What worries me most is eBay and independant sellers on Amazon. You can get about any book you want for a few dollars. I admit I go that route for my children’s books–with six children, I have no choice. If I’m buying for myself, I go with brick and mortar.
The future? The virtual will overtake the physical; I’ve seen the same revolution take place within Information Technology. But the charm of the physical book and physcial bookstore won’t ever be completely killed. There will always be a market for at least one cozy bookstore-coffee house hybrid in any mid-to-large-size city.
For the author? Society’s craving for a good story will diminish and the industry will find a way to compensate authors. After all, without them there’d be no books.
I meant society’s craving for a good story will NOT diminish. Whoops.
As a new author, it gets harder and harder to find local exposure for your work. Most of my sales have come from online retailers. My book is carried in one church bookstore, but other than that, locally, my book is sold through word of mouth, by me out of my house.
I went into our local indie bookstore and got the brush off when I asked about holding a book signing there. I know they have had signings in the past, so maybe I got the owner on a bad day; but that brush off meant I wasn’t sure I wanted to go back.
I have to admit, however, that I rarely buy a book in the store. I almost always shop online. It’s easier with my busy schedule.
As for the future, who can say. I would think more people will be heading to Amazon and other online retailers and the book stores are going to have to find new ways to compete against that. Perhaps allowing patrons to rent a Kindle or Nook, and then having PCs available to download e-Books, which they pay for, onto it. Once the unit is returned to the store, all the items are deleted and then it can be rented out to another patron.
Thanks for another great article. I look forward to tomorrow’s topic.
When I was young I thought I would never see changes as dramatic as my grandmother who moved from Oklahoma to Missouri in a covered wagon and then learned to drive on the freeways in Los Angeles. Now, I know that I too, am witnessing unprecedented developments in our culture and our way of life. Yet, there remains in human beings inner needs that are consistent. This website offers a thought provoking and fascinating look at future trends:
http://www.faithpopcorn.com/
How that information translates into action for book publishers, book stores, agents and authors
will depend on innovation.
I look at the food industry and see that growers and retailers have adapted to the changes consumers desire. We see the emergence of Farmer’s Markets, the Slow Food Movement, boutique restaurants preparing and serving food from their own gardens. The use of the internet and social networking is invaluable in this industry.
I think there will always be a place for the “bookstore on the corner” where the proprietor knows your name and can order the book you want without any paperwork. I have always been a part of the reading world, but am new to the other side…the writing/publishing world. However, in any industry, change is inevitable and I agree with you Wendy, “innovative stores will survive this perfect storm”….isn’t that the American Way?
I may be a futurist, since I find the e-publishing trend encouraging. If nothing else, we’re able to get stories quickly into readers’ hands without wasting trees for paper and fuel for shipping. Do all books need (or deserve) to be printed on paper? We read many books for entertainment, for escapism. They’re the literary version of sitcoms (and there’s not a thing wrong with that), but those stories aren’t likely destined to become classics. I think there will always be a “legacy” print option for stories that stand the test of time and prove themselves in sales.
Amazon-style marketing creates a more direct link between writers and readers. When I began to study fiction, I was amazed to learn that many traditionally published books STILL never make it to bookstore shelves. Physical space is limited. The big bookstores, as you say, lean toward proven authors. But “digital shelf space” provides a very broad playing field where many more have the opportunity to compete. The next problem may be that TOO many compete, but I trust that readers will eventually sort out the good reads, as they always have.
Hi Wendy – I think the savvy independent bookstores will need to focus on strategic marketing with robust community programs and issue-related tie-ins. All the better if this is children/teen focused. There are a bazillion different ways to get parents into stores (i.e. $3 birthday coupons for schools to pass out; school presentations; % of individual purchases allocated to local school library-must partner with school to publicize; good coffee/me time for parents while kids are engaged) That’s off the top of my head. Variety, frequency and hard work are key. Today’s indy bookstore needs to be part marketing whiz and part social director.
Unfortunately, I don’t think my local bookstores are doing anything quite that innovative but I know I would take advantage of those types of programs. Just like Toys R Us-it’s not where I typically shop but when one of my children gets their birthday gift card in the mail, we HAVE to go. And when that child gets a toy, I have to buy something for the other one. The bonus of going to the bookstore over Toys R Us is I end up buying something for myself as well. And I’d probably pick something up for the hubby so he wouldn’t feel left out. 😉
Thanks Wendy – I’m off to email my local indy bookstore. 🙂
I buy most of my books online but I have not given into the kindle, iPad yet. I have a real problem reading books on a computer type system. I LOVE to hold a book. I think that prices need to be more reasonable and streamlined in order to get people back to buying printed books again. There is a huge difference in book prices when people compare Amazon to Borders. Granted a brick and mortar bookstore has large overhead costs but people are struggling and have been for years now. With this economic downturn we have to get books into people’s hands at a resonable price or they will continue to wait for the free version on kindle. I would personally rather see a little profit off a book than non at all.
I live in a town with a very hot independent bookseller–Malaprop’s in Asheville, NC. I think they continue to see success because they’re not just a bookstore, they’re a COMMUNITY of book/art people. They have tons of events, invite lots of folks to participate in unique ways, offer a very cool little coffee bar and have a HUGELY loyal following. They also do a great job of focusing on local/regional authors who would get less attention at the big chain stores. Of course, I’m fortunate to live in a part of the world that’s lousy with authors. Still, Malaprop’s is an excellent model for how to do independent bookselling right.
I wonder what will happen in a few years when the economy improves. Small businesses of all kinds are struggling right now, not only bookstores. But many of the big guys are going under, too. Look at Borders, for example. And when people have gone through difficult times they tend to want things that are safe and comforting so curling up with a good book may become more popular in the future. We can always hope.
While I would hate to see the book retailer disappear, as a writer I don’t care how people read my work, just that they read it!
I feel physical books will likely stay around in some form. Too many of us love a physical book in our hands! And, like Sarah mentioned with Malaprop’s, books and book stores foster community, common ground, and fellowship.
Like others have said, I do think prices in brick and mortar stores need to become more comparable to big online retailers. But, without a business background, I don’t have any suggestions on how to do that.
As for marketing books, the power of word of mouth has greatly increased its reach in the past decade or so. Readers can post reviews viewed by many very easily. And, we can share our book recommendations quickly to hundreds or thousands of people via social media, like Twitter. I know that I pay attention to reader reviews, though keeping in mind that everyone has unique opinions.
I love my bookshelves full of books. I like reading to a child while he looks at the wonderful pictures. I love the look and smell and feel of a real book. But…
I also love my Nook. I like being able to read in bed without needing a lamp. I like not have to turn the page or lose my bookmark.
I guess I want it both ways. But if I had to give up one or the other, I’d have to give up my e-books. They seem to have less “value.” *sigh*
This is a great blog series. Thanks, Wendy!
I don’t feel I have a grasp on the ins and outs of traditional book publishing, much less the new trends in e-books, but one of the things that I think is positive is that it seems that, for people like me who are exceedingly shy person to person, with more and more of the marketing done online, that will level that problem out. I know to some that seems impersonal. To me, it’s manageable.
I wonder if the paper book will become a luxury? I am already willing to pay too much for a book I can hold, set on my shelf, and glance across the room to recall an enchanting journey that touched my heart once (or twice). Seeing a book across the room is like waving to old friends across the years. It’s not the same when you have to push buttons in order to view the books on your “virtual shelf.”
I can imagine one day showing my grandchildren (I have young children now) a leather bound edition of Great Expectations. I will ask them to run their fingers across the page so they can feel the imprint of ink on paper. I will hold the pages just beneath their noses for a sniff – because this betrays the history of the book, where it has traveled. And they must feel the weight of it in their hands. Of course, I probably won’t be willing to let them hold the book, it will be so rare . . .
Nostalgia aside, I really am willing to “roll with it.” Most change brings with it the possibility for something good. I’m looking for the good, but holding on to my leather bound editions.
There will always be traditional brick-and-mortar bookstores, because unpublished writers will always need a place to gather and commiserate together 🙂
I like the ideas provided regarding the necessity for owners to realize who their customers are; while it would seem to be the most basic thing for an entrepreneur to grasp, perhaps some owners don’t recognize that their communities may be undergoing shifts in demographics. For example, a store that specializes in childrens’ books might need to consider relocating if families are moving out of the community and being replaced by young professionals who don’t want children.
While we readers do have an economic vote with where and how we buy our books, that isn’t the only vote available. For example, many companies are given special tax breaks for locating in a community; a voter petition could place on the ballot similar language for independent entrepreneurs. Some localities might already have such tax breaks in place, or programs tailored to helping local entrepreneurs, yet the owners may not be aware of what is available. And while the tax code might not be as exciting as discussing a classic novel or new bestseller, try to bring up the issue of how the community can help next time you meet your local bookseller, book club, or writers’ workshop.
Unfortunately bookstores are fighting an uphill battle, but I can’t let go of hope that I’ll be able to take my grandchildren into a good old fashioned bookstore. I recently had to watch the demise of our local chain of Christian bookstores. It’s disheartening, but I have to admit I’m part of the problem. I’ve order online to save a few bucks.
I had never given any thought to the dilema of the incapability of the smaller publisher to handle the volume a large chain bookstore requires without risking everything in an expansion. Great food for thought.