LOGOS 13(3)_crc 17/9/02 10:59 AM Page 145 LOGOS Cause for Debate – 8 Independent vs corporate bookselling: A British view Willie Anderson In this day and age, to refer to the independent sec- tor of the bookselling trade as having a “ trade war” with the supposedly all-conquering chains is out of date. “War” conjures up bloodshed, casualties, friendly fire and, for those of us who can remember, food rationing. At least in Britain’s book world, this is a gross misuse of a powerful small word. We do have a struggle for market share in the A native Glaswegian, Willie book trade in the UK and Ireland, but it is not just Anderson has been in bookselling between chains and independents. It stems from and with John Smith in Glasgow the growing disparity between good and vibrant bookselling, and mediocre to poor purveyors of our since 1973. He worked his way wonderful cultural product. This struggle is aggra- up from being a sales assistant in vated by anxiety over an apparent lack of sense of the College Department to direction or purpose on the part of some publishers Managing Director, a post he towards the continuation of building a future with booksellers. It is a struggle, too, to retain, or revive, assumed in 1994. In 2000, he led the bookshop as the pre-eminent location from a management buyout of the which to purchase a book. More books are now company, which was being sold outwith the traditional bookselling envi- subsequently acquired by Coutts ronment than ever before, and this includes books Information Services Ltd. He being sold directly by publishers, especially to the remains Managing Director of the professional and academic market. company, whose focus is now * * * * * purely upon academic and professional book retailing. From I am uncertain whether I have any right to be considered an independent bookseller, partly 1995 to 1997, Anderson was because I am not sure what the term means. I run a President of the Booksellers company which currently has seventeen shops and Association of Great Britain and which has been around since 1751. I am its eighth Ireland. During his tenure, the Managing Director in its 251 years of existence. I was once accused of managing a chain (heaven for- Net Book Agreement finally fell, fend!) of bookshops, but that sounded too corporate an historic event for which he for me, so I replied that I run a collection of highly declines to accept culpability. autonomous independent niches. My own acclaim Email: [email protected] to being an independent bookseller arises from the fact that I am not particularly partial to following the instructions of others, which some may see as obduracy or arrogance rather than independence. 145 LOGOS 13/3 © WHURR PUBLISHERS 2002 LOGOS 13(3)_crc 17/9/02 10:59 AM Page 146 Willie Anderson I do enjoy a remarkable freedom to manage renowned for its range of stock and the knowledge John Smith & Son but my experience cannot be of its staff. Located just off the main shopping thor- compared with those who give their life and soul to oughfare, it was considered to be a destination running a bookshop on which they depend for their store. Then along came Borders with a 40,000 livelihood. I do have other people to run things square-foot superstore on the best retail location in when I am not there. I greatly admire anyone who the city, which happened to be 100 yards away from has the courage to open a small shop, stock it with John Smith’s. With their ground floor alone larger books and then fight (and it is a true fight) to than our whole six-storey premises, we understand- encourage customers to come through their doors. ably found it difficult to compete. But that is not But there are many managers working for the the whole story. We had added, well prior to Bor- chains who are just as independent, individualistic, ders’ opening, all the modern features – a coffee aggressive and committed to their business, or, shop, a range of inventory, sofas, author events. We should I say, to the books that they are selling. It is had the name but now we were definitely in the simply incorrect to claim that independent book- wrong location. We were no longer special enough sellers, passionate to the point, sometimes, of utter in these days of cloned high streets to tempt people tedium about the books they sell, are for this reason to deviate from the main shopper trekking route. better booksellers than some crime fiction know-all We should have seen that shopping patterns were in a chain. Good booksellers of all kinds have an changing and should have taken the decision to indefinable quality called flair. They have the abil- move years before. It would have been a highly ity to recognize quality in the books they are stock- courageous and contentious move at that time. Our ing, not just because they like the books, but failure was a management fault, and I accept my because they understand, almost unerringly, what share of the blame for that. So our demise from that their customers enjoy. That ability is to be found site was not just because a bigger store was able to amongst chain booksellers too, though they may dwarf us. not always be able to express their commitment in such an open and personal manner. The commit- * * * * * ment defines the character and creates the appeal of their shops, no matter who owns them. There are similar tales in other parts of the UK, where almost all of the once large, local, fam- ily-run bookshops have closed, been bought or gone We in the book trade have bust. When I first entered bookselling in 1973, the to remember that what is book trade was dominated by names like Georges in happening now in Bristol, Heffers in Cambridge, Austicks in Leeds, Wilshaws in Manchester, Hartley Seed in Sheffield, bookselling has been Hudsons in Birmingham, Dillons in Gower Street, occurring to all other types Foyles in Charing Cross Road, Hanna’s in Dublin, of independent High Street James Thin in Edinburgh – and John Smith’s in retailers. Glasgow. Today only John Smith’s and Foyles are left as independent bookselling companies, albeit with new shareholders. Blackwells, though every It is true that many independent bookshops in inch and quarrel a family firm, has always been Britain have closed in recent years, many of them slightly too big to be classified among those men- famous names, but I am not convinced that every tioned above, whose common denominators were closure can be laid at the doors of the bookselling that they were powerful locally with a solid market behemoths. Obviously any established bookshop share, owned their main premises and made funda- can suffer from increased competition but there is mental management mistakes in adapting to the nothing new about that. My own company had a rapidly changing book business. While quite a few very large – or we thought it was large – bookshop independents have closed in recent years, the rate in Glasgow’s city centre. It was a local institution, of closure is no greater than it was when W H 146 LOGOS 13/3 © WHURR PUBLISHERS 2002.