[First, a note to self: Don’t come up with any more crazy ideas about trying to do a book fair AND do something else – like, oh I don’t know, post pictures and updates from the fair. Not a good idea. You will have neither the time nor the energy.]
Last weekend’s Santa Monica Book Fair has me – and many other dealers – thinking about the future of smaller regional fairs. The event itself was well-run and organized, and with over eighty dealers exhibiting from around the country was a sell-out. From that angle, the show was a success.
Among the dealers, however, a very different picture emerged:
“Dull.”
“Lack-luster.”
“Anemic.”
“Slow.”
During the show, many were heard complaining that this was their worst Santa Monica fair ever (more on this below). After the show, many dealers reported sales 1/3 to 1/2 of what they were only the year before. And many sellers (myself included), found the vast majority of their sales were to others in the trade, with little to so-called “civilians.”
What was going on?
The most obvious cause was attendance, which everyone I spoke with agreed was way down from previous years. The usual suspects were offered for fewer shoppers: the economy, the current uneasy political climate, and the price of gas, etc. And undoubtedly these played a part.
But I’ve been wondering if perhaps other forces were also at work.
Because for the first time in my (admittedly brief) two years of exhibiting at fairs, the impact of the internet was frequently brought into the exhibition hall itself. This was the first fair I’ve attended where I regularly saw customers examine a book, then set it down and take out their cellphones to (presumably) compare prices online.
Now let me say right off, I have nothing against this practice. It’s something I sometimes do myself. But it would be naive to think that near-instant access to online pricing information on the part of buyers won’t impact the future of bookfairs (and for that matter bookstores).
Certainly, for those sellers with overpriced stock relative to online options, this will be a bad development (and a good one for buyers). However,I worry the change could potentially be a poor one even for those dealers offering competitive prices. I say this because I find that many people fail to properly compare like to like. I see this in my shop all the time. People come in thinking they have an expensive book, ABE print-outs in-hand. But most haven’t accounted for condition, edition, etc. And I suspect the reverse happens at a fair: “Oh, I could get that cheaper online.” When in fact a closer examination of the data (something not encouraged on the small and rather slow devices) might show that accounting for jackets, condition, edition, etc. a cheaper copy couldn’t be found.
Additionally, I fear it further contributes to the general amateurization of our trade: collectors working less and less closely with dealers and relying more and more on their own information and judgment. Again, in theory not necessarily a bad development. But it is one that certainly impacts the trade.
And finally and most obviously, I think it could lead to a further lessening of fair purchases as potential buyers feel less and less a sense of urgency to pick up books they can just as easily pick up online. This of course has been developing since internet bookselling came along, but with online access more and more available “on-the-go” the effect is likely to be exacerbated.
What to do? Increasingly I think dealers will have to tailor their book fair stock to reflect these new realities. And we (both sellers and promoters) will need to work harder to take advantage of the face-to-face interactions fairs afford: to inform, encourage, educate, and develop collectors and clientele.
Chris Lowenstein from Book Hunter’s Holiday has another report from the fair, including this revealing exchange with a customer:
The gentleman in my booth pulled out a few books, looked through them, and then asked me about them. We had a short conversation, and at the end of it he remarked, “You’re very friendly and approachable.”
I wasn’t quite sure how to take this. Why wouldn’t I be friendly and approachable? This is a potential book fair customer, and a potential repeat client. “Thanks,” I responded. “I’m happy to answer any questions about the books and it’s always a pleasure to meet someone who finds the same enjoyment in books that I do.”
Here’s where it gets interesting:
“Well,” he said. “Your fellow booksellers sure are a dour bunch. When you walk into their booths they hardly look at you and if you stay in a booth long enough you can hear one dealer say to another that their sales are slow or the customers aren’t buying. I have one piece of advice for them: If you want better sales, at least acknowledge and smile at your customer when he enters your booth.”
Couldn’t have said it better myself.