Bookstores and book fests teeming with hoards of people were a thing of the past. Bibliophiles have been missing the bustle in a bookstore and the bibliosmic experience they enjoyed by picking up different books from the racks. With pandemic and lockdown, bookstores have turned to new avenues to reach out to the readers. Yes, the indie bookstores are going online.
Bookstores made entrance to digital retail, which was the monopoly of a few e-commerce portals that threatened independent bookstores’ business. Now, independent bookstores have come together and formed the Independent Book Association of India (IBAI) to forge partnerships within the publishing sector and advocate for their rights.
Eight independent bookstores – Literati, Goa; The Dogears Bookshop, Goa; Pagdandi Bookstore Cafe, Pune; Storyteller Bookstore, Kolkata; Trilogy, Mumbai; Rachana Books, Gangtok; KaulKrafts, Jaipur; and Funky Rainbow, Bangalore are the current members of this association. With the looming influence of e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart in online book sales, small and independent bookstores have been facing a decline in their revenues. With the pandemic induced lockdown, many of these bookstores had to shut down, leaving the owners with no income. According to Leonard Fernandes of The Dogears Bookshop, a counter-narrative is required to oppose the monopoly of big e-commerce portals, and it could only be possible through the association of independent bookstores. However, IBAI tries to address bookstores’ issues collectively through liaison with authorities and other stakeholders in the market. Addressing the chain’s problems from publisher to reader, IBAI hopes to have a voice in the market against discrimination on independent bookshops.
Following the lockdown, several bookstores have turned into online sales through Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram, and individual websites in association with delivery agents from Delhivery, Dunzo and Zomato. The sales atmosphere change has helped these bookstores to reach out to their regular customers and new customers. IBAI plans to start an online bookstore shortly supplied by independent bookstores. The recent turn taken by bookstores yields results through sales and hopes to gain enough numbers for collective bargaining. Coming years will witness vibrant online book sales.
IBAI can be reached at https://www.indiebookshops.in/
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