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Search for Britain's best indie bookshop begins
06.01.12 | Neill Denny
The first category of this year's Bookseller Industry Awards opens next week, with booksellers urged to enter the Independent Bookseller of the Year award.
Sponsored by Gardners, this prestigious competition identifies the finest indie bookseller in the country, with the winning shop receiving a prize worth £5,000. The six regional winners are selected by Gardners, The Bookseller and the BA, with each shop becoming a contender for the national award, picked by the judging panel of the overall Bookseller Industry Awards.
Shops are judged on five criteria: operational excellence, customer service, community impact, the store itself, and the sustainability of the business. Entries can be submitted from 12th January until 31st January through www.thebookseller.com/awards.
The current holders of the title are Mr B's Emporium of Reading Delights, while previous winners include One Tree Books (2010), Simply Books (2009), The Watermill Bookshop (2008) and Jaffe & Neale Bookshop and Cafe (2007).
Nic Bottomley of Mr B's said: "Winning was a boost to the business in terms of PR—directly or indirectly it led to us featuring on two or three different BBC outlets and in the broadsheets. And that's all over and above the pride and satisfaction it gives the team. It has a huge impact on the regular customers, who feel involved in the success. Also, we used the £5,000 to speed up the development of a better website and its subsequent marketing."
Bob Jackson, commercial director at Gardners, said: "As an independent business, Gardners Books has focused on developing consistently improved service for our customers, and continually re-invested in our company every year for the past 25 years.
"We are delighted to sponsor this year's award for the Independent Bookseller of the Year to recognise the similar commitment of independent bookshops to excellent personal customer service, and to support their re-investment in their business by offering a cash prize of £5,000 to promote and market their bookshop.
"In today's tough trading and economic climate, we are providing this cash element to enable the winning bookseller to develop their strategy in the most pragmatic way possible. We encourage all independent booksellers to enter for the award."
The winning shop will pick up the prize at the black-tie Bookseller Industry Awards, held this year at London's Park Lane Hilton on 14th May.
Entries for the other Bookseller Industry Awards categories—covering the full gamut of publishing, retail and libraries—will open on 20th January, with full details in The Bookseller.
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An independent Indie of the Year Award would be great. Chosen by a panel of our peers, people who actually know about running a bookshop, etc etc. But this is, I think, more of a 'look at me look at me' sort of prize, mainly for those who are good at shouting the loudest. Not that those who have won it don't run good bookshops - it's just that they're not the best. Why not have invite Indies to vote for the people who we think run the best shops? Although, to be honest, I guess most of us don't get out that much...!
If one of the key criteria is "sustainability of the business", given that last week for the first time in history more e books were sold in the UK than printed books, doesn't that rule out the vast majority of us indies from putting ourselves forward??
We have a wonderful independent bookshop in Golders Green, London, called Joseph's Bookstore and I'd put them forward. They don't compete with the kind of books that do well on Amazon. They specialise, have great literary fiction and poetry sections, and also plenty of local interest. They support local authors and publishers and have a gorgeous cafe. I hope their business is sustainable. I have a feeling it is.
That's just the thing, Adele. The shops have to put themselves forward, fill out some forms, and generally talk the talk to people who may never have run a bookshop in their lives... It's a bit of a joke.
So is it only the bookshops who can put themselves forward? I couldn't suggest good ones as a publisher?
Adele - correct. Apparently publisher's don't count!
Adele - correct. Apparently publisher's don't count!
...Or customers come to that.
I feel so insignificant....
Librarians don't count either Adele, by the looks of it!
Shame-we also have a great indie shop (well, two) which has loads of events, author evenings etc, and supports all things literary and local. They are knowledgeable and brilliant! Warwick Books and Kenilworth Books by name if anyone is in the vicinity... (BA Conference in Warwick in the Autumn?...)
I would have nominated them, along with loads of their customers... oh well, insignificant am I too!!
Dear all
As one of the judges on the awards I thank your for your comments—for good or ill, we appreciate them all!
I would first say that though we have no current independent booksellers among our judges, we are not short of experience, with a judging panel full of book trade veterans (I myself before joining The Bookseller worked and managed bookshops for 15 years). And the BA and Gardners—who come up with the regional winners—are certainly working with book shops on the ground every day. With all due humility, we do know our onions.
Yes, it is not a judging panel of current peers, but judging of any award is by its very nature a rather subjective exercise and even a panel of indie owners would struggle to agree on a winner. Given the vast wealth of talent for us to choose from (the indie bookseller category is always the most contentious among us judges) it is a difficult task, but we are certainly are committed to trying to find the very best for 2012.
And I should point out Jan, Adele, Brett and Can't Bear It there is a extremely valid reason why shops themselves have to enter: we require a level of detail that only the owners of the shops can provide, such as in-depth financials (kept confidential, of course), square footage, number of titles, exact number of events etc, etc.
But, my dear friends—you are not insignificant! Be bold, take the bull by the horns! Simply go to your favourite bookshop and urge them to enter! As you can see by Mr B's Nic Bottomley's comments above, the publicity and £5,000 prize are well worth the time it takes to fill in the forms.
I'll go one further. Feel free to email me (tom.tivnan@bookseller.co.uk) if your favourite indie has not entered, and I will try to chivvy them along to enter.
In-depth financials? Why?
To spare the Awards the potential embarassment of announcing a winner which then closes its doors three months later.
I will ask Joseph's Bookstore in Golders Green to enter. They are particularly independent and stock such a great selection of books, plus they have a gorgeous cafe and are lovely for events. I need to pop in with our latest books and will talk to them.
An independent Indie of the Year Award would be great. Chosen by a panel of our peers, people who actually know about running a bookshop, etc etc. But this is, I think, more of a 'look at me look at me' sort of prize, mainly for those who are good at shouting the loudest. Not that those who have won it don't run good bookshops - it's just that they're not the best. Why not have invite Indies to vote for the people who we think run the best shops? Although, to be honest, I guess most of us don't get out that much...!
If one of the key criteria is "sustainability of the business", given that last week for the first time in history more e books were sold in the UK than printed books, doesn't that rule out the vast majority of us indies from putting ourselves forward??
We have a wonderful independent bookshop in Golders Green, London, called Joseph's Bookstore and I'd put them forward. They don't compete with the kind of books that do well on Amazon. They specialise, have great literary fiction and poetry sections, and also plenty of local interest. They support local authors and publishers and have a gorgeous cafe. I hope their business is sustainable. I have a feeling it is.
That's just the thing, Adele. The shops have to put themselves forward, fill out some forms, and generally talk the talk to people who may never have run a bookshop in their lives... It's a bit of a joke.
So is it only the bookshops who can put themselves forward? I couldn't suggest good ones as a publisher?
Adele - correct. Apparently publisher's don't count!
Adele - correct. Apparently publisher's don't count!
...Or customers come to that.
I feel so insignificant....
Librarians don't count either Adele, by the looks of it!
Shame-we also have a great indie shop (well, two) which has loads of events, author evenings etc, and supports all things literary and local. They are knowledgeable and brilliant! Warwick Books and Kenilworth Books by name if anyone is in the vicinity... (BA Conference in Warwick in the Autumn?...)
I would have nominated them, along with loads of their customers... oh well, insignificant am I too!!
Dear all
As one of the judges on the awards I thank your for your comments—for good or ill, we appreciate them all!
I would first say that though we have no current independent booksellers among our judges, we are not short of experience, with a judging panel full of book trade veterans (I myself before joining The Bookseller worked and managed bookshops for 15 years). And the BA and Gardners—who come up with the regional winners—are certainly working with book shops on the ground every day. With all due humility, we do know our onions.
Yes, it is not a judging panel of current peers, but judging of any award is by its very nature a rather subjective exercise and even a panel of indie owners would struggle to agree on a winner. Given the vast wealth of talent for us to choose from (the indie bookseller category is always the most contentious among us judges) it is a difficult task, but we are certainly are committed to trying to find the very best for 2012.
And I should point out Jan, Adele, Brett and Can't Bear It there is a extremely valid reason why shops themselves have to enter: we require a level of detail that only the owners of the shops can provide, such as in-depth financials (kept confidential, of course), square footage, number of titles, exact number of events etc, etc.
But, my dear friends—you are not insignificant! Be bold, take the bull by the horns! Simply go to your favourite bookshop and urge them to enter! As you can see by Mr B's Nic Bottomley's comments above, the publicity and £5,000 prize are well worth the time it takes to fill in the forms.
I'll go one further. Feel free to email me (tom.tivnan@bookseller.co.uk) if your favourite indie has not entered, and I will try to chivvy them along to enter.
In-depth financials? Why?
To spare the Awards the potential embarassment of announcing a winner which then closes its doors three months later.
I will ask Joseph's Bookstore in Golders Green to enter. They are particularly independent and stock such a great selection of books, plus they have a gorgeous cafe and are lovely for events. I need to pop in with our latest books and will talk to them.