After the notable success of its efforts to popularise the annual book fairs it holds in Bangkok, the Publishers and Booksellers Association of Thailand (Pubat) is gearing up to promote small, stand-alone bookshops operating throughout the Kingdom. Held between June 21 and 29 this year, Thai Independent Bookstores Week managed to attract the participation of 41 independent bookshops based in Bangkok and other urban centres. Pubat secretary Pichet Yimthin recently spoke to Life about his organisation’s plans to help small-scale booksellers and why he thinks they provide a valuable service and play an important role in our society.
To compete with large bookstore chains, small and independent bookshops need to create their own distinctive identities and cater to a niche market.
How did you come up with the idea of an independent bookstores week?
Pobat didn’t actually create this festival. The project was pioneered last year by editor/publisher Ruengdej Chantarakeeree and 10 other independent bookshops including Bookmoby, Passport and Candide Books. They got a good response from the public and a lot of media exposure. It is worth noting that Thailand was only the second country in the world, after the UK, to stage an independent bookstores festival. Pubat only stepped in during the second year in order to bring the festival to a sustainable level, expanding it to accommodate more small shops based in the provinces.
What’s the situation for small, independent bookstores in Thailand? Do they face the same fate as family-run corner shops that have to close down because they can’t compete with the likes of 7-Eleven?
It’s tough for independent bookstores with low capital investment to survive in a market that has long been controlled by bookstore chains such as Se-Ed, B2S and Nai In. You have seen signature bookshops like Praepittaya and Odeon closing down. But we are also witnessing encouraging signs that small bookstores are learning how to fight back by adapting their business strategies. To compete with big businesses, these small shops need to be creative. They create their own niche, focusing for example on art books, or on cultural subject matter like Rim Kob Fah does, or on travel books like Passport. And these shops don’t just sell books; they host activities such as book talks, poetry readings and even small concerts. They no longer focus exclusively on over-the-counter sales; they also sell books online. In short, these small bookshops are making a comeback.
How important do you think small and independent bookshops are these days given that readers can now pick up books at chain-store branches in many department stores and at book fairs. In addition they can also buy e-books simply by downloading them from the internet.
Small bookshops have a significant social value that goes far beyond the buying and selling of books. These small shops serve as cultural community spaces and private libraries. In the past people would simply walk in and read entire books, even have a chat with the owner and sometimes leave without buying a single item. These small shops play a large role in fostering community interaction and nourishing the culture of reading. We need small and independent shops to counterbalance the big chain-store bookshops and prevent them from monopolising the whole market. What’s going to happen if this handful of big shops implements a common pricing system or starts to dictate the selection of titles displayed in every single bookstore?
What do you think would happen if we were only left with a few very large bookstore chains?
I’d say that bookshops all across the country would be very alike. We’d have a shelf of books on teenage romance, a second shelf for melodrama, another shelf for dhamma, self-help and guidebooks. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with these kinds of books, but what I find worrying is the prospect of bookshops across the country starting to resemble supermarkets, all offering a very similar range of products.
How can small, independent bookshops win the fight against big chains?
They need to differentiate themselves by creating a unique identity for themselves and catering to a niche market. Obviously, independent bookstores don’t have the financial resources to compete by stocking more copies of a particular title or a greater variety of books or by offering huge discounts. But they can create a uniqueness, a sense of intimacy, that personal touch that regular customers or casual visitors can identify with. These shops can present themselves as connoisseurs in certain areas and sell only selected items or books on specific subjects. Indeed, they can be shining examples of the effectiveness of niche marketing and branding. Bookmoby caters to urban intellectuals, selling highbrow literature for artsy types and the literati, while the Rim Kob Fah bookstore at Khok Wua intersection [on Ratchadamneon Avenue] is the place to find books on history.
What can we expect to see from this independent bookstore festival in future years?
The results from its second year were very positive, a marked improvement on the first year. The number of participants increased to 41 shops, 30 more shops than when we started out. These shops know what to do and do it quite well. They run activities and are able to engage with the general public. Pubat has not imposed any conditions or required the participating shops to organise any specific activities; we just play a supportive role. In the near future, we plan to help these shops form their own network, based on book genres. I think the festival is gaining momentum and it definitely has the potential to become a popular annual event.
