Letter
Issue 6,141 On the cover
Clockwise from top left:
Helen Bain, Imani Thompson, Ana
Kinsella, Mahmud El Sayed
A joined-up business needs all its links, says Philip Jones
Editor, The Bookseller T
he book trade is a networked busi- ness. Books do not travel freely from the author’s mind into readers’ hands, there are many stops along the way. Some would regard this
as a problem, a friction that ought to be smoothed away as it prevents the unhindered flow of ideas. But others recognise that each pause adds value – an edit, a marketing plan, a cover design, a conversation between bookseller and customer – often making the difference between success and failure, visibility over anonymity. In a comment piece on high streets published
on The Bookseller’s website, Andy Rossiter, founder of the book chain Rossiter Books, makes a similar point about how we work as a collecive. “Independent bookshops bring people into town centres in ways that cannot be replicated online. Events such as author talks, children’s story times and book clubs increase footfall, extend dwell time and support neighbouring businesses. While each activity may be modest in isolation, together they help sustain consist- ent engagement with the high street.” Since I know a little about the area where
Rossiter operates – Cheltenham, Hereford, Malvern, Monmouth, Ross-on-Wye and Leominster – I can testify to the importance of these shops, both as destination stores for heavy readers, otherwise obliged to shop in mixed-multiples, charity shops, or online, but also as creative and cultural meeting points.
The official charts This week’s number ones
Contents In this week’s magazine p28
It is almost impossible to walk past a good
bookshop without wanting to go inside and engage with the contents. Books enrich lives, says Rossiter, but so too does the way he goes about his business: “We employ local staff, invest in our premises and maintain high standards in shopfronts and interiors because we believe vibrant high streets require active, visible busi- nesses committed to their surroundings.” But Rossiter’s piece had a sharp edge. He
wants the government to look again at the increase in rates so that the tax does not damage retailers. The Booksellers Association has calcu- lated that the increases would mean a bookshop in England would need to sell an average of at least 1,141 extra books per year to maintain a status quo. “Communities deserve bookshops that are free to focus not on decreasing margins, but on increasing inspiration,” wrote Rossiter. The government is not insensitive to the
lobbying around this. It has pledged £150m to help regenerate high streets, including support- ing independent businesses, and comes as part of a wider review. Its a piece of work that should interest all of us – booksellers can only sell books if there are authors and publishers to create them, working within a system that rewards the effort and protects the legacy. While the “tech bros” push a frictionless future, for us any review of the sector should take into account the chain as well as the links. Last week, as part of The British Book Awards,
It is almost impossible to walk past a good bookshop without wanting to go inside and engage with the contents
we recognised 76 independent bookshops, 63 small presses and 42 libraries that make up just some of the networks that get books seen and heard. In all three instances, the numbers are on the rise with hard work, vision and dedication providing for growth in sales, output and read- ing. Our intention here is to champion the trade’s achievements without under-estimating the effort involved, or giving the impression that everything is swell. By running a joined-up and broad awards we are able to amplify the whole sector, as well as its constituent parts. Equally, anyone looking at the books sector
should not be distracted by the success we highlight. That is the hard work bearing fruit, it only tells us so much about the roots. Or as Rossiter put it: “Resilience should not be mistaken for inexhaustibility.”
Books Debuts of the Year, Volume 2: Helen Bain, Mahmud El Sayed, Ana Kinsella and Imani Thompson Paperback Preview
PRINT E-BOOK AUDIO London Book Fair Special Average selling price £9.02 Year/Year rise 2.9% p06 01-28
Classified Jobs in Books
36
Charts The Official UK Top 50 Fiction
6-9 10-27
Non-Fiction Children’s
Indie & Digital Market Spotlight
28 30 31 32 33 34
05
Welcome
SARAH WEAL
Comment
Leader
27.02.26
Debuts of 2026 Volume 2
Our pick of the debut novels publishing in the spring P06-09
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