News
Four hundred French indies receive 'quality label'
22.09.09 | Barbara Casassus
The French National Book Centre has published the list of 406 independent booksellers, belonging to 400 booksellers, that have been awarded the new three-year quality label.
The booksellers, from all parts of the country, had to respond to a number of criteria to qualify for the LIR, or librairies indépendantes de référence. These included deriving at least half their turnover from the sale of books, proof of independence, diversity of stock, the quality of staff and services, and a strong programme of events.
In exchange, they are entitled to exoneration from the payroll tax, or taxe professionnelle (TP), that is levied by local authorities, starting from next year. The label, which was officially launched last April, was one of the proposals in the 'Plan Livre' that was adopted by the cabinet in November 2007 to bolster the book business.
A total of 635 booksellers had applied for the LIR out of the 2,000-odd potential bricks and mortar candidates. Many independents are financially fragile, partly because of heavy charges that weigh on all French small and medium-sized enterprises.
But apart from giving the 460 outlets kudos, the LIR might not help them financially, because the government is thinking
The TP represents 3 million to 4 million euros a year to the potential LIR candidates, or between a third and a half of their net profits, Husson added.
