It's the first day of spring but our friendly Bay Bookshop, bought only a few years ago by its new owner, won't see another summer. The previous owners, Peter and Beth, anticipated the impact of the internet and got out in time and with a small profit.
How can any brick-and-mortar bookshop compete against the huge offerings on the internet where one can order just about any book from anywhere in the world, often at hugely discounted prices and posted free of charge? Add to this the competition from second-hand bookshops and op-shops selling sometimes almost brandnew books for just a couple of dollars and one wonders, "Why run a bookshop at all?" (more in this article).
Of course, there will always be the odd customer who needs help, like the little old lady who asked, "I read a book in the sixties. I don’t remember the author, or the title. But it was green, and it made me laugh. Do you know which one I mean?”, but they're outnumbered by the browsers who come into a bookshop, pen in hand, to scribble down ISBNs to purchase later, for less, online.
I always feel sad when I see yet another bookshop close down. However, I cannot single-handedly support them all nor can a resist the temptation to buy online or to trawl the local op-shops for some unexpected 'treasures'.
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As a parting gesture, I bought from the Bay Bookshop The Bookshop That Floated Away which, if they had read it, could have given the owner an idea of how to stave off the demise.
