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Mar 8

Bricks & Mortar Blues | HMV expected to consider an emergency rights issue | News | Retail Week

HMV is going through the horrors. The situation there would seem to be going from bad to worse. Waterstones is surely likely to leave the group if this continues. What amazes me about that decision though is the likelihood that in cash and sale terms, the book-chain is more likely to recover or at least stabilize:

UBS analyst Adam Cochrane said: “In our view HMV would be in a much more stable financial position if it issued equity to pay down debt.” Arden analyst Nick Bubb said: “It is becoming possible after [Tuesday’s] debt disaster the group will have to sell Waterstone’s and raise emergency equity.”

Brokers thought HMV would probably need to raise at least £50m. They said it would need a convincing business recovery story to win support from shareholders in the event of a fundraising, which they fear could dilute the value of their holdings.

via HMV expected to consider an emergency rights issue | News | Retail Week.

Mar 7

Bricks & Mortar Blues | The bookshop that lost the plot – Books – NZ Herald News

An excellent piece on the collapse of REDgroup in Australia and New Zealand with New Zealand’s Whitcoulls as its primary focus. The Irish publishers (or indeed the Canadian, Austrian or any smaller market publisher with larger same-language neighbours) will find many of the notes ringing true.

Independent bookseller Hamish Wright says he understands the reasons for such moves, but laments that it sometimes means retailers are not able to respond to customer demand as quickly as they would like. Some New Zealand orders are now being given lower priority than those from Australia, he says, and some now take many days to arrive. In December in particular, delays can mean lost sales, he says. Or they may prompt customers to go online instead.

Independents insist their superior service and greater knowledge will continue to give them an edge over the chain stores. But with sales of e-readers slowly gathering momentum in New Zealand, and overseas sites such as Amazon and The Book Depository continuing to siphon off an unknown number of online sales, some believe that many bricks and mortar booksellers will struggle to remain viable.

Even Whitcoulls has been unable to match its competitors in online sales, despite the fact that it was one of the first to tackle what used to be called e-tailing with its aptly-titled FlyingPig website. More than a decade later, local websites such as Fishpond and MightyApe are believed to be well ahead of Whitcoulls in online sales.

via The bookshop that lost the plot – Books – NZ Herald News.

Mar 7

(NEW) Publishers Take Note | Top Ten Tips for New Publishers | theyearofpublishingdangerously.co.uk

People sometimes forget the practical, less flashy tips when it comes to publishing start ups, this post does a good job of boosting them and changing that balance!

2. Spend a lot of time on the creative vision of the company and all design matters.

As mainstream publishers are forced to churn out more and more titles and ape the covers of successful books, design suffers. There is a lot of opportunity in this to stand out and define yourself in an overcrowded market. Also pay a lot of attention to the typesetting of your books – it will make a huge difference to how readers respond to your work.

3. Listen to people.

This process will change your life, and certainly affect your relationships with all those close to you. In the time spent researching and preparing your venture, talk to as many people as possible to get feedback. You’ll certainly find out who your friends are, but you will also get valuable advice, possibly saving you time and money when you take the plunge.

Top Ten Tips for New Publishers | theyearofpublishingdangerously.co.uk.

Mar 1

Bricks & Mortar Blues | HMV warns on profits and could breach covenants – Telegraph

At some point, the question must become what is HMV’s end game. Not will it collapse, but how best to manage the business down. How rapid a transformation is possible? Is there money and profit to be wrung from the best for much longer or would savage surgery NOW result in a longer more profitable life for the company?

It seems clear from a number of reports that Waterstone’s chain is in play, but I can’t help but feel that such a move surrenders a brand and chain that could more easily make a digital transition then the music group. To see what B&N has achieved in the US is instructive surely?

The group added that it has entered talks with its lenders with a view to changing its banking covenants.Simon Fox, the chief executive, said: “Trading conditions remain tough, reflecting a difficult consumer environment as well the changing markets in which we operate. However, our business is adapting quickly to respond to these external factors, and we are confident that our plans will ensure its long-term and sustainable future.”

via HMV warns on profits and could breach covenants – Telegraph.

Feb 23

Publishers Take Note | From some perspectives, we are tipping right now and publishers’ metrics will show it – The Shatzkin Files

Mike Shatzkin talks about the impressive/scary growth of ebooks in the US market:

Michael Cader of Publishers Lunch reported you have to subscribe to use the links that BookScan numbers show a drop in unit sales of printed books of 4.4 % from 2009 to 2010.

But don’t take that number to any bank. It is already out of date. Cader did a further analysis of more recent BookScan data shortly thereafter showing that print book sales have dropped by over 15% compared to the prior year over the first six weeks of 2011! And the share of print sold online keeps rising, so that almost certainly means that print sales in stores has fallen even faster. Could print sales in stores have dropped 20% or 25% from a year ago? They certainly could!

Sales of iPads, Kindles, and Nooks exceeded most expectations for Christmas 2010. Dominique Raccah, the head of independent publisher Sourcebook, a company with a diverse trade list, reported on her blog that dollar sales at her company in January were 35% digital!

via From some perspectives, we are tipping right now and publishers’ metrics will show it – The Shatzkin Files.

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