Next time you are faced with the dilemma between buying books from companies such as Amazon or chain bookshops, or shopping in a local, independent bookshop, think about a future you could unintentionally be supporting. The first Irish Book Week was launched on October 27th, a sure sign that we are still a nation of avid bookworms. John Keane, chair of Bookselling Ireland, put it quite simply, “We are a nation known for fantastic writers and bookshops are part of our culture. If we value this we need to support our local stores.”
The web vs. the bookshop
When the Amazon Kindle was first released in 2007, a lot of people believed that they would herald the end of the paperbacks, with the first model selling out in a record 5 and a half hours. However, there is still much that online services like Amazon or Book Depository cannot replicate. According to Books Are My Bag, a UK based nationwide campaign that celebrates and promotes bookshops in all shapes and sizes, 56% of all book purchasing decisions are made by the consumer in the hallowed halls of bookshops. The sheer volume of books available in a store is a not factor to be overlooked when considering consumer purchasing trends – it’s easy to pick up and browse through a huge variety of books, not to mention feel and see the size of the books, which is simply not possible online.
Furthermore, bookshops have the added value of knowledgeable staff which can never compare to the ‘customers who viewed this item also viewed …’ feature on Amazon. Book selling and buying can be two incredibly personal activities, ones that are often rewarded and bettered by human interaction. Booksellers work like doctors, diagnosing the ailment of the patient in the form of ink and paper. As with all things, it is better to shop local and to support people working in your own neighbourhood if you appreciate the service they provide. If we all buy our books on Amazon there won’t be many people working in Ireland’s book industry, and Amazon alone is not enough to support a nation of bibliophiles. Think about whose job you are supporting every time you make a purchase.
Why independent bookshops you may ask? Independent bookshops offer us a unique unhomogenised experience. If we are to solely shop in chain bookshops we will be fed the same list of top ten books to read, with little to no room for fledgling authors or translated work to come to our attention. Independent bookshops often have a collection of ‘staff picks’, they are more likely to trade with newcomers and preserve the life and soul of reading in many communities. They are unpredictable, offering highly personalised suggestions and a curated selection of books, and quite often they host many literary events that help foster a community of readers from book clubs (as Bob Johnston from The Gutter Bookshop does) to launches, children’s workshops and an array of events during book festivals. Independent bookshops offer a unique haven for books, a place where they are judged more on personal merit rather than the same, company-wide list of ‘bestsellers’.
Independent bookshops abroad
How do other countries feel about their indie bookshops? In France, it’s forbidden to discount books by more than 5%, and independent bookshops are supported by tax cuts. Every year they have what is called the rentrée littéraire, a type of literary unveiling which encourages the nation to visit bookshops and see what new books and editions are available for the new year. Italy similarly offers considerable tax breaks to independent and chain bookshops (up to €20,000 in 2017), while here in Ireland we don’t place any tax on books whatsoever.
Furthermore, people travel from far and wide to go to specific bookshops like Shakespeare & Company in Paris, The Strand in New York, and Voltaire & Rousseau in Glasgow (a personal favourite). Perhaps even more exciting than specifically revered stores are Book Towns, which are towns and villages around the world that house a large number of used/antiquarian bookshops. Safe to say these are not Amazon friendly places.
Efforts are often being made to protect our bookshops in the wider world but their individual fate is ultimately in the hands of the consumer. For every book we buy locally we are keeping that experience alive. Bookshops are so much more than a mere marketplace. They are a refuge for the mind, a place where people can discuss and squeal over their latest read, a gateway for new books to be brought to life through launches and emphatic employees recommending obscure writers, not to mention a place where family book buying rituals begin. There is not much in this world more heart-warming than a child eagerly clutching their book, unwilling to let go for the few moments it takes to scan the barcode at the till or a customer returning time and time again because they trust your recommendations. Even the ‘recommended reads’ section on Amazon doesn’t beat this.
