The Bookseller.com

7th October 2008

E PURCELL

Eoin Purcell is commissioning editor for Mercier Press, Ireland’s oldest independent publishing house. He writes a blog on what is happening to publishing and books at www.eoinpurcellsblog.com

Irish market branches out

25.02.08

Before the Booksellers Association Irish Branch Conference takes place on 29th February, it is an apt time to ponder which way the Irish market is going and how it may fare in the face of a cooler economic climate in 2008.

Eason and Hughes & Hughes remain the dominant Irish booksellers for now. At a recent Eason presentation, I was treated to a tour of its new distribution facility near Dublin airport. The technology is impressive and includes a fancy robot picker that zooms up and down neat rows, packed floor to ceiling with books. What's most striking is the commitment to the market that such an investment implies, clearly echoed in the UK, where the chain plans to "radically" overhaul British Bookshops and Sussex Stationers.

Hughes & Hughes continues to grow and with new stores planned for 2008, it is committed to building market share. With its airport stores it may well be insulated from the effects a slowdown could have on the retail environment.

Smaller players have also made impressive use of the boom to expand their offering and build thriving businesses. Dubray, Hodges ­Figgis and the Book Centre stores are delights to browse in and the huge Borders in Blanchardstown is among my favourite bookshops in Ireland. Although their representation in the south is small, Waterstone's stores have an impressive range of titles.

But as in the UK there are challenges to the relative solidity of this set up. Tesco's increasing promotion of books has been noted, with the effect such moves have had on book sales in the UK. This could be a good thing for the industry, finding new readers who only rarely bought books in the past, or it could negatively impact prices.

Ireland has been relatively insulated from internet book sales by our island status and the costs of postal deliveries from overseas (not to mention within the country). Even though both Eason and Hughes & Hughes operate decent websites, they are not the equal of Amazon (with its huge market, how could they be?) and while Amazon.com and .co.uk both feature on the top 100 visited sites in Ireland, neither of the two Irish retailers sites do. Irish customers still buy and sell books online but the extra charges for postage are offputting, and the added complication of the currency difference doesn't help.

The exception to an underwhelming Irish web presence is Kennys.ie, which sells worldwide and is the hub of an excellent personalised book service, run by Des Kenny.

If Amazon opens a distribution centre in Ireland, as is rumoured, that would certainly alter the balance in favour of the web over bookshops and enable Amazon to offer lower priced books and possibly free or cheap delivery.

The Irish BA will offer a glimpse into how the market is prepared for such an eventuality.

International Ireland Eoin Purcell