Welcoming the upstart

A Yorkshire book dealer bucks the tide and hopes good things come to the new Amazon bookstore (emphasis added):

Small and scaled back, the Amazon bookstore will house between 5,000 and 6,000 titles and only those rated four stars and above. With 184,000 new and revised titles published annually (International Publishers Association 2013 figures) there is plenty for bookshops to differentiate and create their own unique space in the market. And there the magic lies. No two bookshops are the same; each has a unique twist, whether it’s a resident cat, famous local author, quirky staircase, chocolate brownie to-die-for or amazing selection of knitting titles. Physical bookshops are places of discovery, distraction and delight. 

Over recent days a stream of families came into our bookshop to buy tickets for the local bonfire night celebrations. "We loved it last year, the fireworks were amazing," someone said. "Do you have any books on Guy Fawkes and what about those adult colouring books everyone is talking about?" another asked. And so it goes on. No algorithm can beat it. Real conversations about real books in real bookshops.

Let’s wish all new bookshops well.