I apologise for not posting last week; I was moving into university, and it was a rather hectic week. All is well now!
(12/09 - Bookshop.org Article Source: The Bookseller, September 11, 2020, by Mark Chandler)
After my last article on the upcoming online bookseller platform Bookshop.org, I decided to get a perspective from someone working directly with the consumers. As a result, last week, I had a little chat with a lovely lady named Victoria Tomlins about the book industry. She works at Waterstones as the Recruitment manager and gave me her personal opinion about the current climate of the book business.
Tomlins felt that while bigger corporations such as Amazon and Supermarkets are infringing onto the ways that bookstores operate and survive, she had hope in the public. She had faith in the culture of the British public; that our stubbornness and the care we have for what makes us inherently British would overpower saving an extra pound or two. She hoped that people would still crave the experience of hunting down that perfect story amongst the jungle of paper and ink.
I have that same hope too. As a country, we are very proud of what makes us British and what sets us apart from our cousins across the pond. Tomlins pointed out that she sees the future of the bookstores in the United States looking a lot bleaker than British stores due to our stronger connection to our English roots.
For example, Hatchard's is London's oldest bookshop; it was established in 1797 by John Hatchard, and it still stands. Britain has a powerful connection to its history which results in the preservation of what makes up our culture. Due to that strong desire, I hope bookstores are here to stay. Tomlins said that she agreed but thought that they would have to adapt to the moving times, primarily due to the accelerated pull of online shopping due to Covid-19.
I look forward to seeing how this industry will develop as time progresses. Will saving a couple of pounds surpass the survival of our history and culture?
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