Books on Demand

As they struggle to balance jobs, family and spare time, Bucharesters and people all over the country spend less and less of their downtime with books

Christine Leșcu, 18.05.2016, 13:21

As they struggle to balance jobs, family and spare time, Bucharesters and people all over the country spend less and less of their downtime with books, in stores and libraries. Proof of that are statistics that paint a picture of a poor book market.

In the last few years, the proliferation of e-books and on-line bookstores offers an easier alternative for people who wish to buy books, but dont always have time to go into town for that. Even though the e-book market stands at a mere 3% of the total book market, on-line purchases are way up.

In a bookstore in the center of the capital, discussions with faithful customers predictably include topics such as the Internet and free time. Even though shes been living for eight years in Bucharest, a young woman we met there had never set foot in a public library here. However, she said she goes to bookstores often:

“Lately, yes, I have been. I have to buy various things for my job too, but it is also relaxing. It reminds me of my youth. I do buy books, but not necessarily in bookstores. Generally, I either go into a used bookstore, or I order on-line. It seems more comfortable and practical, even though prices vary, but it feels different when you hold a book. I noticed a trend in some bookstores to redirect towards on-line sales, because people are short on time, and the Internet helps. However, if you go out for a stroll, you relax and see new things.”

Another customer, a mother who goes to bookstores about twice a week, says she buys books that she got information on beforehand:

“I catch up with the latest on-line, depending on the votes certain books get, then I buy them in the bookstore, or, if I dont make it to the bookstore, I order them online. Considering that most of us work morning to evening, ordering on-line and getting the books delivered at work is the easiest.”

We had such discussions at one of the offices of the Bucharest Bookstore Company, the oldest functioning network in this area, which has been doing this type of activity uninterruptedly for 65 years. To avoid shutting their gates, as many libraries have had to do lately, this network had to adapt to the times, and go on-line, which is imperative nowadays.

They have a program now, Buy and pick up, under which the customers order a book on-line, and it is delivered to the office closest to home, where they can pick it up. As a new service, it is not widely known, as another reader told us:

“Its an interesting idea. In fact, the company I work for has a similar service. But I love to leaf through a book to get an idea about it before buying too. I would not give up walking through a bookstore, even though on-line purchasing is a good idea.”

Marieta Seba, manager of the Bucharest Bookstore Company, says that this service was created after consulting with customers:

“The customer places his order, and if they want to pick it up at the bookstore, this service is free of charge. If they want to come in the morning or the following day, all they have to do is let us know. We can hold on to it for them for a while. This system is good for our clerks too, they can use the computer to check availability, they track down the book, then send it to the customer. However, this can take one or two days, depending on our supply chain and our drivers.”

Internet communication with customers is also used by public libraries, in addition to on-line businesses. That is the case with the Bucharest Metropolitan Library, an institution run by the Bucharest General Council. For over the year, the library website has a form to be filled in with suggestions, and they plan an additional system to try and meet reader needs and wishes, also on-line. Here with details is Anca Rapeanu, manager of the Metropolitan Library:

Anca Rapeanu: “We are slowly getting ready for the moment when we will send books from one branch to another on the basis of a reservation list. This is likely to happen in about two years’ time. Based on a reservation made in the electronic catalogue, after the permit is issued, we will know that we have to send a certain book to a certain branch. We have a very simple on-line form, easy to fill in, and the form can be found on our website. It is also the place where people can make suggestions as to what we should buy. We just have one request: before making any suggestion, please check if the book or the DVD already exits in our library.”

Given the large number of on line forms that have been filled in, we can say that reading books on paper is now being encouraged by some of the most innovative techniques.