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Why Independents Matter

Local bookstores struggle with rent, debt and discounts

by Kristin Schwartz


The latest edition of Canadian Dimension is prominently displayed in the window of This Ain’t the Rosedale Library, an independent bookstore in Toronto’s vibrant Kensington Market. But when approached about this story, owner Charlie Huisken exclaims, “Canadian Dimension - I have a bone to pick with them!” His frustration dates back to 2004 when his store sold tickets for the Noam Chomsky speaking event in Toronto benefiting CD. “They announced from the stage that they hadn’t used Ticketmaster to sell the tickets,” says Huisken. “So who did sell them? I was waiting for them to name all the independent bookstores like ours, but they never did.” For Huisken, this experience epitomized the plight of the independents, which struggle to stay afloat when even progressive people don’t consistently recognize their value and give them business.

This Ain’t the Rosedale Library celebrated its 30th anniversary in September; the store has survived where many others have not. Just weeks earlier, Pages Books and Magazines marked its 30th anniversary by closing its doors. Its lease was up on trendy Queen Street West and the landlord was looking to raise the annual rent to almost $100 per square foot. A two-year search for an affordable new home had been unsuccessful. Other recent Toronto casualties include Ballenford Books, which focused on architecture, Mirvish Books and Art, and Burke’s Books and Picture Framing, Toronto’s oldest Black community oriented bookstore. Mirvish and Burke’s Books continue as online enterprises.

Independent bookstores across Canada have been wiped out in the past decade in the face of both rising rents and the juggernaut of Chapters Indigo and Costco. With huge orders and centralized purchasing these big box retailers can offer books more cheaply than the small independents. According to James Lorimer of Formac Lorimer Books, the impact is felt throughout the industry. “The decline in independent booksellers has drastically reduced the exposure that people have to more interesting, more varied books,” says Lorimer. His company has long published a mix of social justice, ethics, economics and public policy titles. “I still publish a smattering of books of that kind,” he says, “but I find that the sales numbers are 10% or 20% of what they would have been compared to ten years ago.” He cites the example of Denis Smith’s Ignatieff’s World Updated. “ It’s a classic, a book with a clearly articulated political view,” he says. “The sales numbers are terrible. It’s not that it’s not for sale in the Chapters system; it is. But the environment in which you encounter it so argues against it being something special, you pass on it.”

Lorimer sees hope in the McNally Robinson bookstores, a family-owned chain based in Winnipeg with stores in Saskatoon, New York City, and Toronto. “They have used the big box format but are genuinely independent,” he says. The recent launch of a McNally Robinson store in an upscale suburban Toronto mall has been met with enthusiasm from customers, and their author events are unique for the neighbourhood. But Charlie Huisken observes that the manager of that store is married to the president of major publisher Penguin Canada. He questions whether the counter-cultural work he cares most about will be carried on McNally Robinson’s shelves.

“An independent bookstore is about so much more than just selling books,” says Itah Sadu of A Different Booklist in Toronto. The store provides progressive titles from the Caribbean and the Asian and African diasporas. “A Different Booklist has become a meeting place of ideas and critical thinking,” says Sadu, “a centre for people coming into the country not knowing where to go.” The store also hosts workshops and events for new and emerging writers. “We’re a forum for people to launch their books–their babies–into the world. For them to have that rite of passage,” she says.

Sadu chuckles when asked about the business side of the bookstore. “We’re like everyone else in the world; there is no such thing as safety and security anymore,” she says. “You’ve got to keep being creative, you’ve got to work hard, you’ve got to keep thinking, ‘How else can I represent books?’ Because everything in this world has a book attached to it.”  Beyond its retail operations, A Different Booklist has turned to the wholesale market and sells to educational institutions.

Similarly, the Toronto Women’s Bookstore has found a means of sustenance through sales of university course books. “We started out stocking more women’s studies textbooks, but now we have everything from anthropology, political science, history, even physics,” says co-manager alex macfadyen. “The professors stock their course books with us either because they know and support the bookstore or because they’ve heard good things about our service.” This market, and a loyal customer base, has allowed the Toronto Women’s Bookstore to keep its doors open when many other feminist bookstores have shut down across North America.

For Charlie Huisken at This Ain’t the Rosedale Library, the solution to the financial crisis facing many independents involves both changes in policy, and changes in attitude. In Quebec, public institutions including schools and libraries are required by law to buy through bookstores that are based in the province and that stock Quebec authors. A provincial accreditation system enforces the rules.

Additionally, many European and Latin American countries regulate bookselling with fixed book price agreements or laws that require books to be sold at the same price everywhere, at least for a certain period of time after the release date. This policy prevents big box retailers from luring customers with heavy discounts of bestselling books, and supports a more diverse and healthy publishing industry. “That will never happen here,” says Huisken. “Our whole society has bought into this idea that the arts and culture are too expensive and a bargain is always good. Well, some products are cheaper when made with scab labour. Does that make scab labour okay?”

To promote alternative consumer values, the Canadian Booksellers Association launches their “Independents Matter” campaign this fall.  “Environmental, financial and cultural factors are combining to create a growing will among consumers to reclaim their communities,” says the Association. “Now is the time to cultivate this desire by promoting how your store contributes to the economic health and unique identity of your community, as well as what consumers have to gain from shopping there.” Bookstores in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario are holding readings and other events on October 17, dubbed “Independents’ Day”. Meanwhile, Itah Sadu wrestles with how to show her appreciation to the people who come to A Different Booklist. “Where in English,” she asks, “is that word that means ‘thank you so much for understanding the history, the purpose and the strength of an independent bookstore’? I can’t say customer. That’s not just a customer.” 

 

Kristin Schwartz is a contributing member to Toronto Media Coop and a community-based writer and radio journalist.


This story originally ran in the
 November/December issue of Canadian Dimension.


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