Permanent Discounts Have ‘Trivialized’ Books

Dariush Barani, in an interview with a reporter from the Iran Book News Agency (IBNA), emphasized that large-scale investments are devouring weaker investments, stating: For example, a bookseller opens a bookstore in an area where they don’t know the capacity. As soon as it becomes known and, so to speak, popular, a Shahr-e Ketab (Book City) store begins its activity in the same area. Or in an area with capacity, two or three bookstores are already active, but with huge capital and buying a large property, a Shahr-e Ketab opens in a very vast space. Therefore, small investments are devoured; in other words, the bookseller practically has no chance against these large investments. If they are not capable, they are forced to close their bookstore.

He continued: The increase in Shahr-e Ketab branches has its pros and cons. At one time, the “Shahr-e Ketab” complex operated true to its name, “City of Books,” offering 90% books and 10% cultural products; whereas now, 30% books and 70% other products are sold under this complex’s name.

Piracy Empties the Book Market from Within

Barani, referring to the multiple problems faced by bookstores, especially the phenomenon of book piracy, continued: If a book becomes popular and people welcome it, immediately anonymous underground publishers start copying the same work, while the translator or author remains unknown. These copies are seen on street stalls, from sidewalks to the subway. Books offered online with 50 to 70 percent discounts. Underground publishers only use a book’s name; whereas legitimate publishers have dedicated their lives to ensuring every book they print is fruitful and widely noticed.

The manager of Mehragan Bookstore emphasized that there is no strong arm capable of stopping these factors, adding: The number of these low-quality books sold to people has increased significantly. Works that cause reader disillusionment; but because they are sold at large discounts, they attract people. I believe there is an expectation, similar to home entertainment platforms that ask audiences to watch series legally, that at least people should be told to buy books from bookstores and reputable places. The cunning market that has emerged among street vendors has only created an opportunity for profiteering.

Discount Law Not Observed; Disorderly Book Market

Barani, stating that a book is a valuable commodity, not an everyday item, said: During my time as a board member of the Union of Publishers and Booksellers, I used to say that we should choose and print titles that people eagerly buy, not by force of discount. A discount means trivializing a book. Some people have invested their time, capital, and mentally their lives into publishing books.

Barani said: The guild system law states that a store wanting to offer a discount on an item must coordinate with the Guild Affairs Assembly. And that’s for 10 to 15 days a year, not to offer permanent discounts. This approach is not suitable for books. For a cultural product like a book, cultural promotion should be done, not making it a source of profit for individuals.

Keeping a 57-Year-Old Bookstore Alive

He described the future, conditions, and likelihood of bookstores surviving as disheartening, continuing: Four generations of my family have been booksellers; as a bookseller who lit a lamp, I have been active for about 57 years. But today’s youth say they cannot make a living from bookselling and are not interested in the book business. This situation is even darker for those who are just starting a bookstore. Everything needs to be organized, but it seems that bookselling lacks order and system. If customers don’t come to bookstores, how can a bookseller continue? When someone comes looking for a book in a bookstore, we hand over that book, and we ask if we have other books that suit their taste; thus, a cycle is created. In my opinion, planning for attracting customers to bookstores has disappeared. As I mentioned, one reason for this situation is the book street vendors, who should be removed. Of course, online sales also affect bookstore sales, but nothing can be done about that. Only the program of large discounts, which have no authenticity, should be stopped.

The manager of Mehragan Bookstore, explaining that bookselling is a weak profession, added: Those involved in books should be able to deal with issues better and move forward. If things continue this way and bookstores are ignored, no future can be imagined. If the sales figures were noteworthy, we would say entering this profession is good.

According to Barani, at one time, he used to sell an average of 250 to 400 copies of books, but now this number has dropped to 20 to 30 copies per day. I was talking to a colleague in distribution, 5 years ago with one billion Tomans, he had a thousand book titles, and now with one billion Tomans, the number of books he has is 400 titles. This means the basket is emptying. The pressure of inflation has led to a reduction in the number of books.

Inflation’s Foot on Booksellers’ Throats

He emphasized the increase in inflation as one of the problems affecting booksellers, stating: Economic inflation, paper, printing, and other things we deal with daily. These issues have caused booksellers to be unable to continue their activities. Whereas in the past, the print run of a book was one thousand to one thousand five hundred copies, but we see this number has dropped to 100 to 200 copies. If a book is fortunate enough to be printed once a week, by the second week, due to inflation, it has become 10 to 15 percent more expensive. The current state of the bookselling business is not prosperous. Unfortunately, books are not read much, which has multiple reasons, such as the existence of virtual space or the disorganization mentioned.