The official journal of the australian booksellers association
VOLUME 12 • ISSUE 4 • NOVEMBER 2012 ISSN 1445-0437
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The European and International Booksellers Federation Conference I had the privilege of attending the European and International Booksellers Federation (EIBF) Conference, held in Frankfurt, as representative of the Australian Booksellers Association. The conference was run by a skilled and dedicated EIBF secretariat, lead by Brussels-based Françoise Dubruille and Viviane Vandemeulebroucke.
retail price maintenance, and how Night in the UK, made a presentation traditional bookselling needs to compete about WBN, which hopes to expand to and change in this rapidly changing several more countries over the next landscape. The Assembly began with two years, including Australia. each country discussing the state of A highlight of the conference was a their industry. presentation by Thomas Wrensch, the Jonathan Nowell, President of Nielsen, owner of a 4th generation family owned presented a paper on the state of global bookshop, Graff, located in Braunscweig, bookselling, indicating a downward a city of 250,000. Graff had a Thalia (the trend in the sales of physical books thus dominant German chain) opening near far in 2012, with children’s books holding them. Rather than panic, they developed Representatives from US, UK & Ireland, their own, a significant downward trend an integrated strategy to aggressively Switzerland, France, Germany, Belgium, in non-fiction, and fiction largely being ‘outcompete’ with Thalia. It was Japan, Russia, and many other – ‘saved’ by fifty shades of erotica. successful, and reminiscent of Readings primarily European – countries. Significant growth markets include India Carlton’s response to Borders opening Speakers addressed issues affecting the and Brazil, who we hope to see across the road, when Readings went global bookselling community, including represented at future EIBF meetings. very public regarding being locally e-books, e-commerce, sales tax (eg VAT, owned and had that wonderful A French start-up e-book company GST), piracy, Amazon, predatory pricing, masthead ‘livres sans frontieres’. The presentation was reminiscent of the main message from Thomas’s talk was issues being faced by start-ups in that you need to be proactive regarding Australia as much as 18 months ago, and competition, not reactive! was indicative of where the non-English
Inside this issue 02 CEO’s report 03 President’s report 04 Marketing ideas 06 Digital report 08 Employment matters 10
ACBA report
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ILF report
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Visual merchandising
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ABA news
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Bookshop profile
speaking world is sitting on e-book The dinner featured a talk from Len development. As the Australian market Vlahos – former COO of the American is lagging behind the US (2 years) and UK Booksellers Association – now head of (a year), the non-English speaking world the Book Industry Study Group, a book has another 12-18 months to prepare for industry funded body in the US, whose the e-book shift in the purchasing objective is to create a ‘more informed, market. empowered, efficient book industry.’
Tim Godfray (Booksellers UK & Ireland) There were interesting assessments discussed strategies to have ‘bricks and about e-books ‘plateauing’ in the vicinity mortar’ booksellers competing on e-book of 30% of the US market, though Len is sales with the Amzaon juggernaut. They still convinced that it will move upward recently joined the US and NZ in signing past 40% in the coming couple of years. a deal to sell Kobo through member Importantly though, one should look at shops. Julia Kingsford from World Book what is selling through e-books, with continued on page 07 News on Bookselling November 2012
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CEO’s report It is difficult to believe that little more than a year has passed since the last of the RedGroup chain shops closed its doors. Coupled with other circumstances, it has been a year of consolidation for the sector. According to Nielsen Bookscan figures, independent bookshops now account for approximately one-third of the book sales in Australia. Add franchise shops into the mix, and it accounts for about two-thirds of the book market in Australia. Book prices have dropped, so we have had to work harder to keep sales at or near previous levels. Ebook sales have increased, but perhaps because of the slow speed of getting local e-book markets up to speed with range of stock and accessibility to retailer and consumer, it still accounts for less than 10% of the total market. The up-side of this has been to give bookshops an opportunity to assess and adjust to the changing market conditions, and to view what the best options are for them to head in relation to eBooks. e-commerce and stock mix; though the range of solutions with good stock ranges that ought to be available to retailers still are not. My recent trip to the European and International Booksellers Federation (front cover and page 7) provides evidence that the English speaking book world – and particularly the US and UK/Ireland are dealing with the changing marketplace at the coalface, with massive growth – particularly in the UK/Ireland market in eBook sales.
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A significant positive change in the book industry has been increased cooperation between booksellers and publishers both institutionally and individually, as it becomes more and more apparent the important role that bookshops serve at a cultural, retail and industry level. That was particularly evident during this year’s National Bookshop Day (NBD), which saw even greater level of participation and support from publishers and authors. I was fascinated by the fact that NBD trended #1 for most of the day on Twitter, never dropping out of the top five. This was in spite of it being the last weekend of the amateur festival known as the Olympic Games. Congratulations to all of you for your efforts. Next year it will be bigger and better – with some businesses offering to add major activities like the High Jump (how many Lance Armstrong books can you leap over) and the epic 50 Shades of Bookshop marathon likely to be on some enterprising bookseller’s program. Remember August 10... August 10... August 10. And due to an enthusiastic buyer, we have plenty of NBD t-shirts available... contact the office for more details.
Intramar have been notified, and information is available on our website to other ABA member booksellers. We hope those of you who import from overseas will give your consideration to Book Systems International. I’d like to take the opportunity before the year ends to thank our fantastic staff – Robyn, Kal, Liana, Lara and Michelle for their efforts during the year. It is a genuine pleasure to turn up to work every day and know that this great team is there enthusiastically working for the common good of our membership, and working so well together. We wish you a successful, profitable holiday selling season, and hope you manage to get a few days at some stage to recharge for what we anticipate will be a challenging but successful 2013. Best wishes for health, happiness and maybe even world peace.
Joel Becker
Elsewhere.. Sadly, Intramar, who had been our freight forwarding partner, has closed its doors. Thanks to the diligent efforts of Michelle Bansen, our Member Services Officer, we have spoken to numerous potential new partners, and have announced that Book Systems International will be the supplier. All existing customers of News on Bookselling November 2012
President’s report
2012 has really been a year of two halves. After a better than expected Christmas in 2011 and a solid January, led by actually having some decent new releases to sell in a month normally barren of good releases, the start of 2012 was very flat. Retail remained as unpredictable as ever as the Australian dollar stayed above parity with the US dollar. The migration to online and to digital continued with earnest but more Australian bookshops were beginning to sell eBooks as Booki.sh and ReadCloud expanded their partnerships with bookshops. By year’s end the eBook Market in Australia is estimated to be 10% of book sales overall. However this figure varies when you drill down into specific book categories. Within genre fiction like romance, paranormal and crime eBooks can make up to 50% of the market but with non fiction and children’s sales are almost non existent. The US Market, which is about two years ahead of Australia, have been experiencing exponential growth in the eBook market until this year where the market appears to have plateaued out at between 25-30% of the total market. It remains to be seen if this is where the eBook market will settle. Growth has been so rapid that this may be a resting point and we could see further growth. My feeling is that this is the high water mark. 30% is a significant portion of the market, the majority of which is cannibalised from the print market. However it is also important to
remember that most readers are not reading digital only but a combination of print and eBook depending on what suits them and what they are reading which is why it is important that their bookshop can offer all possible formats. More concerning is the continued dominance of Amazon on the back of the Kindle device which is closed to any retail competition thanks to the Digital Rights Management of eBooks imposed by publishers. More retail competition was fostered in the eBook market through the agency pricing model which is currently being dismantled in the US over collusion allegations. It remains to be seen what will happen to the agency model in Australia. The device war is now the major battleground with eBook retailing. The turning point for 2012 was Fifty Shades of Grey. Despite what you may think of the books they have been great for the Australian Book Industry. Over 4 million copies have been sold in Australia. 88% were print books sold through Australian book retailers. So despite the trend towards digital and the anecdotal evidence that people are buying more books online when a blockbuster book hits readers wanted to get it from a physical shop. They wanted to talk to someone about the book and they told their friends about it, who also bought it in store. The trilogy was a welcome boost for the industry that fed nicely into the new J.K. Rowling and now Christmas.
book readers still want to visit their local shop. The challenge for us all in 2013 is to keep this habit up. We are doing ourselves are huge disservice when we look down on the Fifty Shades series. Yes it is badly written and has ripped off the characters from Twilight, as erotica it’s not really that erotic and the relationship between the two characters is also questionable in terms of gender equality but these books have got people reading. They have got people visiting a bookshop. When we degrade the books we are also degrading the people who have read them. What we should be doing instead of ridiculing the books is to take this wonderful opportunity to put more books in people’s hands. This is the essence of what booksellers do better than any other book retailer offline and online. Yes all the Fifty Shades clones are not the answer but there are plenty of great books on our shelves we want to share. I hope Christmas this year again exceeds expectations. The signs are good and the range of books out is great. Happy handselling!
Jon Page
This year has shown that the bookshop is indeed still relevant to readers. When there is a must have News on Bookselling November 2012
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Marketing ideas The Victorian Booksellers Network Q: What happens when you put a bunch of like-minded booksellers in a room together? A: The Victorian Booksellers Network. Just over a year ago, several booksellers in Melbourne decided it was time to get together and hold regular meetings. The old ABA Victorian branch had dissolved owing to changes in the industry and individual circumstances which meant there was no longer an opportunity for booksellers to regularly catch up, share ideas and discuss industry issues. One of the booksellers keen to reinstate these meetings was Linda Tassone at Jeffrey’s Books. “From within our own stores it can seem like we are the only people facing particular questions. As a group of booksellers we find it really useful to get together and discuss issues that we all share - or to provide thoughts on questions that are raised within the group. When we get together for the ABA Conference there is heaps to disuss and the regular meetings throughout the year provide a format for us to continue this discussion. Our meetings are about sharing good ideas and contributing to problem solving.”. It started out slowly with a handful of booksellers attending a bi-monthly meeting but they are now definitely gaining momentum. The meetings are kept informal although they do have an agenda and minutes are kept, particularly if there are action points to follow up. It was agreed to keep them to every second month, because as Linda pointed out there are not many booksellers who “have the luxury of boasting about how much free time we have!”. 04 04
The meetings currently take place in different restaurants around the suburbs to avoid the same booksellers having to travel great distances. Fortunately they have had the inside running on where to meet provided by Tim White at Books for Cooks who is one of the driving forces behind the meetings and who is Second Vice President of the ABA Management Committe. This year’s National Bookshop Day prsented the booksellers with a great marketing opportunity and one they enthusiastically embraced as a group. Warren and Kirsty Bonnet at Embiggen Books had the idea of running a Shaun Tan exhibition based around the theme of The Lost Thing, the theme of which seems to carry a strong message about the so called disappearing bookshops. At the same time, Leesa Lambert at The Little Bookroom was dreaming up a passport for a selection of bookshops around Melbourne. The two concepts were combined and resulted in the Lost Thing Passport competition. The idea being that customers made their way around to bookshops, have their psasports stamped and go in the running for a signed Shaun Tan box set. Warren estimates that it brought in about 30 extra customers into the store over the time they ran the event. He says they will be keen to run with this concept again. Warren has also come up with another concept for the group which is still in the early stages of development. This time for a high quality guide to Melbourne bookshops and a second possible guide to regional bookshops of Victoria. Warren plans to take them forward in 2013 when there’s a bit more time. The group have been making great use of social networking through Yammer, which is like Facebook or
Twitter but designed for file sharing and knowledge exchange. Yammer users can read and track conversations, post personal messages and create event pages amongst other things. Rosy Morton at the Paperback Bookshop explains that Yammer “has been a great extension to the benefits and pleasures of regular meetings. It’s an online forum for discussing issues and changes in the book industry and for sharing information about the many things that we all have to do and have in common - from how we communicate with customers to returns and the sort of systems we use. It’s also a good place to air the odd frustration”. The use of Yammer has been particularly appreciated by some of the out of town booksellers. Both Marylou Gilbert at The Bookshop at Queenscliff and Nicole Maher at Great Escape Books in Torquay remarked on how it helped them to feel more connected to the wider world of the book industry. It also allows users to get a quick response to questions like how to contact a particular rep and is easy for users to respond via their smart phones and or computers. The best way to sum up the Victorian Booksellers Network is to quote Nicole Maher, “highly supportive of each other... a wonderfully warm and friendly network of booksellers who are passionate about books, always coming up with great ideas about promoting books and happy to just share their knowledge and experience”.
Robyn Huppert
ABA Communications Officer News 2010 2012 News on on Bookselling Bookselling May November
News on Bookselling November 2012
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Digital report A lesson from tech history points to bookshops’ thriving future
In a recent American study by book data specialist Bowker, bookstores were second only to favourite authors as the most important source of new book discovery. Few booksellers would find this surprising. What perhaps is surprising is that bookstores achieved this ranking with just 19% of book buyers nominating them. Bowker’s study identified 44 sources influencing where readers discover new books. If we wound the clock back 10, 20 or even 50 years, the picture would be quite different – fewer sources and a bigger role for bookshops in new book discovery. Conventional wisdom says if we look ahead 10, 20, or 50 years, the picture will show more fragmentation – and bookshops sinking even further. This picture looks even worse as we watch the unseemly haste with which publishers scramble to replace bookshops with new online methods of ‘discoverability’ . But is the trend inevitable? Or is there something booksellers can do to reverse it? Part of the answer might lie in adopting a tactic that invaded the tech industry two decades ago and is now part of its fabric.
How the tech industry was transformed In their first decade, personal computers mostly stood alone, unconnected to the wider computing world. But by the mid 1980s it was becoming common for them to be networked to each other and to the
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big mainframes that dominated corporate computing then. The problem in this pre-internet era was that every vendor had its own, incompatible system for networking. Initially, each vendor tried to use this problem to its advantage, forcing customers to use their solutions alone to guarantee that everything would work together. But the customers rebelled: they wanted to be able to mix and match and to buy from whom they pleased. This forced competing suppliers to cooperate so that their systems would talk to each other. In the early 1990s, networking pioneer Ray Noorda coined the term “co-opetition” to describe the strategy in which it was in each supplier’s self-interest to help competitors reach its customers. Skip forward a decade and a half. When the so-called Web 2.0 came along – the social web we know today rather than the original one-way, readonly web – some of its earliest users, the bloggers, took sharing to a new level by freely linking to and promoting others’ work, and encouraging other sites to do likewise with theirs. Eventually, even traditional media sites found that opening up and sharing widely, even with competitors, was good for business. E-commerce sites embraced the same spirit. Amazon has been at the forefront, sharing most of its prime assets with competitors. A competitor can access Amazon’s world-leading physical warehousing and logistics, advertise and sell its competing goods on Amazon’s site, use Amazon’s rich metadata on its own site, and employ Amazon’s massive cloud computing power to run a competing service. Amazon has become the world’s most successful online retailer while (or perhaps because of) opening up almost every aspect of its business for competitors to use.
How a bookseller applies the lessons In the world of bricks and mortar business, however, we often view competition quite differently. A recent example was the negative industry reaction to top UK bookselling chain Waterstones when it agreed to promote Amazon’s Kindle in-store. Waterstones isn’t just selling the Kindle devices. It also welcomes and openly encourages shoppers to download Kindle ebooks while in-store (for which it receives a cut), effectively turning its 300 high street locations into an Amazon showroom. Looked at in conventional business terms, Waterstones’ move looks little short of suicidal. ‘Amazon is inviting Waterstones to top itself,’ screamed one headline in The Telegraph newspaper. But looked at in the light of how successful tech and online businesses operate in inter-connected markets, this move makes sense.
As the Bowker data on book discovery shows, bookshops are already operating in a world where readers have lots of choices for new book discovery with bookshops just a small part of their repertoire. In this world, the idea that a store in some way ‘owns’ a customer who is disloyal if they stray elsewhere to buy seems quaint.
Waterstones can’t lock its shoppers into doing business with them, any more than those early computer companies could stop users building networks with their competitors.
So a better strategy than closed walls might be a welcoming and respectful openness.
News on Bookselling November 2012
“the best choice is to be visible and useful in as many places as your customers are... The more book discoveries you prompt, the more you’ll sell “ In the UK market where Amazon accounts for three out of every four ebook purchases, Waterstones’ decision to ‘hand over their customers’ might be a coup rather than a capitulation. If you’re going to help customers to buy books in any format they want them, it makes sense to work with your biggest competitor rather than a tiny rival. And Waterstones’ gains won’t just come from slender commissions on Kindles and Kindle ebooks. By making its customers’ reading lives simpler, it stands to boost its print market share, especially if its partnership with Amazon leads to cross-promotions, bundling deals and the like. Waterstones might enjoy other benefits, too, if publishers and authors see how its influence in selling books extends well beyond just those sold through its stores.
An opportunity for the industry For the wider bookselling industry, there’s a lesson and an opportunity. The lesson from co-opetition is that when barriers come down and markets open up, your best strategy might be to work with competitors in ways that make your customers’ lives easier. One of the biggest beneficiaries of co-opetition in the tech world was, ironically, the company that had dominated the industry for decades by locking in its customers and shutting out rivals: IBM. Once the walls started to crumble, IBM like most of the old guard hit trouble and looked doomed. Instead, it’s now America’s fourth largest corporation. Inspired new leadership opened up its technology, helped rivals sell to its customers, and rebuilt the company around being the best partner for users in a complex new environment. Booksellers, at both a store-level and as an industry, face a similar challenge and similar choices. Ultimately, the best choice is to be visible and useful in as many places as your customers are. The worst choice is to be invisible and unhelpful. The more book discoveries you prompt, the more you’ll sell – even if your competitors capture many of the sales.
Joel with representatives of the English speaking bookseller associations.
European and International Booksellers Federation Conference continued from page 1 blockbusters and genre-based fiction (romance, erotica, historical fiction...) leading the way. That means that bookshops that adjust their stock to focus on other categories may not be as highly impacted by the Amazon juggernaut, particularly if they have their own e-book solution. Some of the presentations are available on-line. Follow the links on www.aba.org.au. It wasn’t all hirschkalbsrücken and spaetzle. I was given a few minutes to pitch National Bookshop Day as a global concept. I also visited the concurrent Frankfurt Book Fair – imagine putting Jeff’s Shed (Melbourne Exhibition Centre) into one floor of one hall, adding at least one more floor to each hall, and multiplying it by 11, and you have a small idea of the scope of the fair. New Zealand, the ‘country of interest’ had a massive presence promoting not only their literary culture, but NZ as a tourist destination and a trading partner (pity Australia couldn’t share that space). It is really important to be part of a global bookselling community in an increasingly globalised industry. There is much we have to learn from each other, and we hope to build on these links.
Joel Becker, CEO
My guess is that influence - amplified through partnerships, online media and other channels – rather than location, price or convenience might be the currency of the leading bookstores of the future. At an industry level, that influence – whether or not the purchase happens in bricks and mortar stores – is the best antidote to the too-common view of an industry in terminal decline. Getting in bed with friend and foe alike might be the best route to achieving it.
Martin Taylor
blog: activitypress.com/ereport twitter: @nztaylor News on Bookselling November 2012
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Employment matters Don’t Get Caught in the Undertow - Protecting You and Your Staff under the Fair Work Act and the Modern Award The following article is based upon a presentation given at the Annual Conference earlier this year. The presentation was provided by Peter Ryan of Peter G Ryan & Associates, Industrial Relations and Employee Relations Consultants. Peter has been asked to write this article which will be followed up by other articles on Industruial Relations issues. Peter will also be providing updates for the ABA website with useful resources on areas such as retail awards. We believed it was timely to bring this matter to the attention of members given that the major changes introduced by the Labor Government with the introduction of the Fair Work Act have been in operation for a reasonable period of time and that key aspects of the revised Workplace Relations system are now currently under review. Peter’s presentation focused upon how to protect your business and your employees in employment issues under the current Legislative framework of the Fair Work Act 2009. A necessary starting point being to have an awareness and understanding of current Workplace Relations legislation and obligations. Peter’s Presentation focused on where we are at presently. In his view, to get an understanding of where we are currently at it is necessary and helpful to go back in time. It wasn’t necessary to go too far aback in time – we only have to go back to the introduction of the Fair Work Act in 2009. The Fair Work Act’s introduction and genesis came about as a result of the current Labor government attaining office in 2007 – in what was termed the unwinnable election – (until Kevin 07). 08
It is clear that a substantial factor in that 2007 election campaign was a fear campaign run by the Union movement which tapped in to a community fear of the then Howard Government’s Industrial Relations reforms (colloquially known as Workchoices) as having gone too far. The ACTU ran a very poignant and successful fear Campaign. The Howard Government recognised this and proposed amendments but the ‘damage was done’ in the mind of the community and Labor attained office in the supposedly ‘unwinnable’ election. Upon doing so it honoured it’s Election commitment to do away with Work Choices / Workplace Relations Act 1996 – and replace it with a new institutional framework - the Fair Work Act 2009. The presentation covered the major features of new system introduced with the commencement of the Fair Work Act 2009. Major areas covered in the presentation were:
Overview of Fair Work Australia – Role and Function Fair Work Ombudsman- Role and Function National Employment Standards - Explanation of Modern Awards Explanation and Background Unfair Dismissal Regime – Revised Arrangements Apart from providing an overview of the revised Employment landscape and an awareness of matters that members need to be aware of the presentation also provided assistance to members in attendance by way of providing a Checklist for Employers/ ‘Tools to Help’ to ensure compliance and suggestions as to how to avoid ‘pitfalls ‘in your employment of personnel.
Some of the matters covered related to Employer Checklists for: •
Awareness of National Employment Standards (NES)
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Award Coverage and Obligations Checklist
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Record Keeping Requirements
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Hiring and Firing Checklist
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Other Matters such as Company Policies
Over the course of the next couple of months we will be providing further detail to members on such matters and other matters covered in the conference presentation. We will also be providing additional information on a range of current Employee Relation matters particularly keeping members aware of the progress of Award Modernisation Review and also the Review of the Fair Work Act, which is currently under way. Set out below is a summary of the matters that were covered in the Conference presentation and will be the subject of further Website content: Awareness of Workplace Relations
legislation and obligations
Fair Work Act 2009 Modern Awards (especially General Retail Industry Award 2010 National Employment Standards Agreement Making Options Obligations in relation to Hiring and Firing Fair Work Information Statement Small Business Dismissal Code – Unfair Dismissals General Protections
Record Keeping Requirements Checklists for Employer News on Bookselling November 2012
Summary of Major Changes to
Workplace Relations System from 1 January 2010
Major changes to the Workplace Relations System took effect from 1 January 2010. Set out below is a summary of those Changes and the revised obligations you have as an Employer following 1 January 2010. Further explanatory advice will follow. The most important changes relate to Award Coverage and the commencement of National Employment Standards. •
The Modern General Retail Industry Award 2010 has become the key Modern Award for the Bookselling Industry.
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All member Companies (other than WA Sole traders and partnerships) are now bound to observe this Award
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Transitional provisions apply
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July 1, 2010 was the major date for commencement of new Award
How do these Changes affect your business/workplace? Clearly it will vary from company to company, however you need to be aware that all employers in the national system must now comply with new: •
General protections, unfair and unfair dismissal laws
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Agreement making obligations and procedures
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Transfer of Business rules
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Workplace rights specified in the Fair Work Act 2009
From 1 January 2010 employers in the national system, must: Comply with the National Employment Standards (NES) - The Safety Net of 10 Minimum Employment Conditions, and; Ensure that wages paid to employees at a minimum comply with the wages now contained in the applicable Modern Award.
Revised Unfair Dismissal provisions
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Revised Enterprise Bargaining Arrangements
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Revised protections dealing with Workplace rights and industrial activities
The new National Workplace Relations System covers almost all of Australia’s Workplaces and will apply to a range of persons that were previously Award free and ‘outside the system’.
Are you keeping the required Records and providing compliant Pay Slips
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Are you aware of your options for Agreement making with employees
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Are you aware of and understand the Good Faith Bargaining requirements
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Do you understand and are you able to comply with the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code if applicable
Further information in relation to these matters is now available on the Website, including a current copy of the General Retail Industry Award 2010. On our revised Website you will find;
Give each new employee the Fair Work Information Statement before, or as soon as practicable after commencing employment
An overview of Modern Awards and the Transitional Provisions that apply regarding specific provisions from 1 July 2010
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Meet minimum rates of pay in applicable Modern Award or National Minimum Wage Order
A Summary of the National Employment Standards from 1 January 2010
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A Pro Forma Fair Work Information Statement
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Information and Proforma Examples of Payslips and Records Required to be Kept
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Information on revised Termination of Employment changes including the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code
From 1 January 2010 Modern Awards, and a new Safety Net (National Employment Standards (NES) commenced operation and essentially replaced existing Federal and State Awards and the Australian Fair Pay and Conditions Standard (the Standard).
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As an employer you must:
Two new Organisations to regulate the system – Fair Work Australia and the Fair Work Ombudsman
Are arrangements in place to ensure that your business is compliant with the National Employment Standards from 1 January 2010
a current copy of the General Retail Industry Award 2010 containing current Rates of Pay
What are your Obligations as an Employer following 1 January 2010
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Changes to Workplace Relations System from 1 January 2010
Earlier changes introduced from 1 July 2009 included;
Award 2010. This Award has become the key Modern Award for the Bookselling Industry.
Meet terms and conditions of the applicable modern Award, if one exists and applies Meet the terms and conditions of the National Employment Standards
Summary You need to be able to answer ‘yes’ to the following to ensure Compliance •
Do you know which Award your business is currently covered by and which Modern Award applies after 1 January 2010 – (other than Sole Traders and Partnerships in WA) the most likely applicable Modern Award is the General Retail Industry
Over the course of the next few months additional information in relation to specific topics will be posted on the website.
Peter Ryan
Peter G. Ryan & Associates News on Bookselling November 2012
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ACBA report
The highlight of the campus bookselling year is the Australian Campus Booksellers Association Annual Conference, to be held this year at the Mecure Hotel on the Brisbane River from November 13-16. The theme of this year’s conference is ‘Diversifying our Future’ in recognition of the challenges campus booksellers face in their core categories and the need to look to new revenue streams to remain relevant and to continue to thrive. To this end, this year in a break from tradition, the conference is being extended by a day to incorporate a special training day especially for ACBA members. The day will be facilitated by leading US retail and customer experience expert Doug Fleener, whom ACBA and the Co-op Bookshop are jointly bringing to Australia. Several ACBA members have seen Doug in action at campus bookselling conferences held in the States over previous years and he comes highly recommended. There are already many campus booksellers in Australia and New Zealand looking to innovate. An example of this is the QUT Bookshop in Brisbane who as part of a campus wide redevelopment project is moving into new premises which will incorporate a coffee bar and new product lines. Doug will also be a keynote speaker at the conference attended by campus booksellers and higher education publishers will attend. In addition to 010
Doug, newly appointed Festival Director and CEO of the Brisbane Writers Festival, Kate Eltham will speak on the ‘Future of the Book’ and Jon Bird of IdeaWorks will bring an Australian perspective to retailing. I recommend Jon’s blog newretailblog. com. His perspectives on general retailing are relevant to all booksellers and in particular I refer you to his recent post ‘What’s Your ACDT Strategy?’ on how to take on amazon.com. The afternoon sessions will culminate with what will be a fascinating panel discussion on the future of learning. Experts across teaching, libraries and publishing will address how future learning will impact on publishing and ultimately bookselling. The day will conclude with the conference dinner, to be held among the dinosaur exhibits (a happy accident) at the Queensland Museum. The evening will include the annual ACBA Awards which recognise excellence in campus bookselling and publishing. In other news of note ACBA is delighted to announce a closer working relationship with the ABA. Earlier in the year it was decided, after much thought and discussion, that ACBA would benefit from a stronger association with the ABA. Joel Becker and his team have graciously agreed to assist ACBA with the day to day administration and conference planning for our organisation. Whilst ACBA represents significant sales volume in the higher education sector it is a small organisation made up of
working managers across Australia and New Zealand, all of whom have obvious time constraints. Certainly ACBA have already benefited immensely from the skills and expertise in the ABA team as evidenced by the conference organisation. As our relationship grows we hope it will be mutually beneficial and that there will be areas and issues of shared interest which we can work together on. The ACBA Executive would like to sincerely thank Joel Becker and his team for their willingness to assist us in this way. Finally I would like to acknowledge on behalf of the ACBA Executive and members, the resignation of Jane Caton, President of ACBA and CEO of the Co-op Bookshop earlier this year. Jane’s contribution to campus bookselling and the wider bookselling industry was immense and it was a joy and a privilege to have worked alongside her.
Juliet Blyth
ACBA President Acting
News on Bookselling November 2012
ILF report The Indigenous LIteracy Foundation is delighted to announce current fundraising, together with grants, has reached $515,000. This month, Margaret James is working with four communities to finalise translations of The Honey Ant Readers into Western & Central Arrernte, Luritja and Pitjantjara. These translations were made possible by your generous support and by a grant from the Mary McKillop Foundation. During the month, many communities commented on our new book distribution managed by consultant Paul Dennett and here is one photograph and comment from GAWA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, off the northern tip of Elcho Island, Northern Territory:
ILD was covered in NSW Parliament and this year five politicians spoke about our Foundation and its important advocacy role. Carmel Tebbutt said: “Initiatives such as this that seek to expand people’s access to books and that celebrate a focus on reading to lift it above other activities and endeavours is something important that we can all support.”
There were some amazingly generous donations and pledges from booksellers including Readings, Avid Reader, Snowprint Bookshop, Riverbend Bookshop & Tea House, Bowral and Kiama Bookshops, Potts Point Bookshop, National Library Australia, Better Read Than Dead and many many more. ILD was buoyed by a really positive uptake of the Great Book Swap in schools; almost double the response in 2011. The educational market, including libraries and academic institutions has raised over $90,000 year to date and one school wrote to say: “It was a great success! It was a fantastic opportunity for our student to gain an awareness of Indigenous communities and to realise how fortunate they are!” (Emily Lloyd, Teacher Library, Girton Grammar School Victoria). A full report on ILD 2012 is now on our website. -
Thank you to all the booksellers, big and small, who contributed to the day and for taking our new Donation Boxes, which reportedly have been a great bonus, helping build an awareness of the Foundation in bookshops.
“Thanks so much for the support you give our school, and especially our kids. I hope the photos are helpful for you to promote your wonderful program”.
www’indigenousliteracyfoundation.org.au As this newsletter goes to print, we are gathering further feedback and would welcome any comments, suggestions for our campaign in 2013.
Karen Williams,
ILF Executive Director.
Despite very difficult trading times, this year’s Indigenous Literacy Day (ILD) on Wednesday 5 September generated huge awareness in schools, businesses and public institutions and sparked some solid media coverage including SBS TV news coverage of the Sydney Opera House event. For the second year running,
News on Bookselling April 2009
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Visual merchandising Visual merchandising is a major part of how you promote and sell the books and other items offered for sale in your bookshop. It is used to create an atmosphere that encourages customers to enter your bookshop and hopefully to linger for awhile. It is used to inform them of promotions, instore events and special offers and importantly, it contributes to the identity of your bookshop and helps to strengthen the bookshop’s image in the mind of both existing and potential customers. Visual merchandising is not just limited to window displays but encompasses the location, the façade, signage, layout, lighting, music, posters, colour of the walls, fixtures and the cleanliness of the shop. Following are some tips and techniques to make the most of what you have. A visit to your bookshop should be a pleasurable experience for your customer – one in which they want to make a purchase because they feel a connection and not just because they like the look of your business card.
The Shopfront Four to ten seconds – that’s all the time you have to grab the attention of a customer before they walk on by. That is not a long time to make an impression given that there is always another store down the road or online that is also competing for those customer dollars. How you present your bookshop is a complex and strategic part of your business. The shopfront is often your customer’s first interaction with the store. This “face” serves many purposes not least of which is to reveal what it says about you.
Signage Signage is a key component of creating a good first impression. Aim to keep your brand identity consistent across all signage. Think about what information is relevant to display. The trick here is to keep it simple and current. With signage it is a case of ‘less equals more’. To make an impact and impart your message, don’t clutter the spaces with too many posters or printouts, outdated events or promotions. Avoid hand written signs as much as possible and keep them short. You don’t have much time to tell the customer what you want them to know. Awning sign – mostly only viewed from the opposite side of the street or by passing motorists, the key information to provide is the name and perhaps the shop number. Hanging sign – this is often a light box on the pedestrian level and could supply a few more details like a phone number, a slogan or a logo. Shop window or door – there is more time to take in details at this level so web addresses, shop hours, specialisations and credentials could be featured here. Never trust a sign writer to do your graphics without first checking out their work. Often sign
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writers are just that – they are not graphic designers and some may not employ the services of one. A common mistake is that they take your logo and distort it to fit a space or simply use it as it is without considering its legibility or placement in the “bigger” picture. Entry way and Footpath – this is also a valuable area to reinforce your identity with door mats, drawings or quotes written on the ground or on a child’s blackboard, pot plants, and bench seats to create a sense of welcome. Don’t forget to check local council bylaws on the use of ‘footpath furniture’. Maintenance of these items should be a regular habit. Don’t let a sign fall on a customer’s head, check for damaged, fading signs and repair and repaint as necessary. Clean windows frequently and keep the entrance way and footpath clear of boxes and rubbish. Shabby displays send the message that your business is not serious. If it looks bargain basement then that is what your customers will expect. Take a look at your shopfront and try to see it as the customer would.
Your windows reflect the soul of your store... empty windows will eventually create empty stores Linda Cahan, Feng Shui for Retailers Window Displays Your windows offer prime real estate for advertising your products. When used effectively they also act as a form of theatre to attract passersby with the aim to sell. Windows represent up to 10% of your store’s takings so it pays to capture a customer’s attention. Dare to be different - even if a competitor has similar stock how you present your products could alter the perception of News on Bookselling November 2012
Visual merchandising is not a science; there are no absolute rules. It is more like an art in the sense that there are implicit rules but they may be broken for striking effects. The main principle of visual merchandising is that it is intended to increase sales, which is not the case with a “real” art. ~Wikipedia
their value. Try not to mirror what your competitors are doing and with a little imagination use your windows to make a statement and deliver the message you want to communicate.
Tell a story
Your window should be used to tell a clear, relevant and cohesive story. Try to stick to no more than two stories at a time so that the message is not misleading (e.g. a summer window highlighting winter clearances). Focus on a book, theme, range, brand or offer. Your window will generally be based on:
Types of Windows
Closed Back/Closed In – this window has a permanent or semi-permanent back wall that separates and completely closes off the window from the store. Lighting does not compete with the store lighting and you are able to create a more theatrical display. Semi-Closed Back – this window has a partition that goes to a certain height that separates the window from the store but still allows customers a view into the store itself. Open Back – this window has no back panel at all so the customer can see straight into the store and the activity within but this may also distract from the window and the products you are trying to display.
A great way to create an inexpensive half back window is through the use of a fabric banner. Choose a material that complements your product selection and use wood or metal rods to suspend the banner in place. Carol Bagaric, Retail Revamp
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New releases/arrivals
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Specific promotions such as Mother’s Day /Father’s Day, Christmas, Easter, National Bookshop Day
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Seasons – winter, spring, summer and autumn
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High demand items
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A sale or offers - a buy two, get one free
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Specific topics – travel, cooking, gardening, back to school, sport, art, a particular range of children’s books
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Events – movie launches, food and wine shows, author tours, Flower and Garden shows, Grand Prix.
Try not to limit yourself to just one theme. Experiment with events around festivals, school holidays or the beginning of the academic year, other celebrations including store anniversaries, movie tie-ins or sporting occasions. Use a 12 month calendar to list all the events so that you can see the gaps and identify an opportunity.
Where does the eye travel through the display? There are a number of display techniques that have been commonly employed including Pyramid – product placement starts off at a broad base and then progresses to the middle or a point as it moves higher. Step – when the product is placed in a series of steps to draw the eye in a direct line. They start on a low point on one side and gradually progress upwards to a higher point on the opposite side. Dominance – when the product and accompanying props have the centre of attention and the eye is drawn to the group of items. Mirror – when the product is reflected exactly opposite as though looking into a mirror Repetition – when the product is aligned horizontally or vertically in the same form by height, spacing or angle. Horizontal/Vertical Arrangements – when the product follows a pattern that either runs down or across the shelf. F or Z formation – when the product follows the lines to form either of the two letters. The “Z” usually consists of three levels and no two levels are at the same height.
Rotate stock regularly – as a bare minimum change stock once a month, but weekly is ideal. Do not leave it for more than 8 weeks. Variation will help your displays avoid becoming boring, and not using the same materials and props for different themes one after the other will also help keep it fresh and relevant to the customer.
Focal Point and Visual balance
Where do you want the customer to look? Is there one product in particular that you would like to have them notice? Is it effectively highlighted? Is it at the eye level of most customers? News on Bookselling November 2012
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Visual merchandising Radiating – when the product appears to have a “sunburst” effect. For example the new release title takes centre stage, with the backlist titles radiating out from it towards the front. Experiment and see which techniques work best for you bookshop however the general rule to keep in mind is that you keep the product and props tightly grouped to reinforce the theme. Strong displays also have a visual balance. Darker colours appear heavier than lighter ones, and larger objects also appear heavier than smaller ones. To avoid a top heavy look place the darker and larger items on the bottom. Mostly the eyes are drawn to the lighter items so it is useful to use props to elevate them to eye level.
Props
The size of your window should influence the amount of stock versus the percentage of props. Don’t clutter it full of paraphernalia only to realise there is not enough room for the product and conversely if the window is too big you may need to shrink it by using shadow boxes or blocking material. One of the most useful props (worth its weight in gold) is a suspended grille system. This is used to create light and depth as it makes it easier to suspend such things as posters, fabric, netting and other props.
The use of complimentary props can greatly accentuate a window display. Some props have a functional purpose 014
– to elevate and hold the books, whilst some are used to set a scene, for example, beach balls to suggest summer. You can promote a “spring is here” theme by using flowers, fake birds, a wheelbarrow, gardening gloves and implements, outdoor table and chairs, water jugs and glasses. These can be used as a backdrop or part of your display. For summer holidays you can utilise beach umbrellas, towels, seashells, sunscreen, sunglasses, wading pools and swim rings.
For Christmas you could use the advent calendar idea. Use a big piece of red material to write on the dates and source some cheap picture frames. Take out the glass and place a book in the frame. This means you are able to change the product as newer titles arrive whilst still keeping the Christmas theme going. For writer’s festivals you could put in a chair and desk with pens, paper, typewriter and desk lamp. For literary awards you could feature previous winners and have a big question mark over the current winner to be. You could make it interactive by getting you customers to go into a draw and guess who they think will win and then award them the book as a prize. Props come in all manner of sizes and shapes. They can be gathered from your own home, friends, relatives, garage sales, op shops and discount stores. Unusual and distinctive items such as chicken wire, baskets, old fashioned scales and cooking utensils, furniture, old fashioned suitcases, large pots, quirky hats and hat boxes, artificial flowers, soft toys, train sets, board games, balloons, streamers, plain coloured or patterned wallpaper, tablecloths, lace and fabric in general are all excellent for creating texture and a visual impact. Remember
though as much fun as it is to play around do not let the props overshadow the merchandise – the books must be the main focus. After you have completed your display, take quite a few steps back and look at it from all angles. Remember that very few people will be standing directly in front of it but approaching from the side (more likely rushing past on their way to do/get something else). Try to see it from the customers focal point and ensure that it is does not overwhelm and confuse the viewer but is interesting and attractive. Does it make you want to go into the store and explore further?
A red bow wrapped around a product is a really quick and clever solution to creating Christmas hype in your store. Other alternatives could include large stars, oversized candy canes or Christmas wreaths. Carol Bagaric, Retail Revamp In Store In store displays are just as important as the window as this is the area where the real browsing takes place. You can carry on the theme from the front window display to reinforce the message and continue the story. You can use a table, carousel end or other display units and then the actual section where the books are shelved, allowing for a seamless transition. Many times a customer will say ‘I saw it in the window’, and by placing that product throughout the store it ensures it is more accessible and easily found by the customer (and staff!). In store signage is the silent salesperson that can generate significant sales. It can be used to inform customers about events, new titles, and specials or to direct traffic flow through your store. The same guidelines apply as they do with the News on Bookselling November 2012
ABA news New ABA Members
We welcome the following new members Bookshop Members Aetherworks, Sydenha, NSW Alternate Worlds, Bayswater VIC Antique Print Room, Sydney NSW Arete Antiques, Mordialloc VIC signage at the shopfront and in the window, avoid hand written signs, keep them short and make them positive. Select your wording carefully – saying save $$ instead of having a % off is more effective. Repetition of signage or posters in various sizes placed throughout the store close to the merchandise serves to remind the customer about a particular product and draws them through the store.
Atlas Educational, Epping VIC McLeod’s Books, Nunawading VIC Pronto Sales, Bendigo VIC Story Mama, Hughesdale VIC The Kid’s Bookshop, Box HIll VIC Time Booksellers, Frankston, VIC
Music
Associate Supplier Members
Music builds atmosphere, but make sure you choose music that fits your bookshop and customers. Silence is intimidating – it makes the customer feel that they are in the spotlight and most are keen to avoid this. The right choice of music creates a relaxed and informal environment, meaning that if your customers are comfortable they will stay longer, enjoy the experience and typically buy more.
Margaret River Press, Wembley WA
The Counter Upon entering your store the majority of customers will walk in the opposite direction of the register, yet these are ideal places for visual communication. Put something interesting on the counter for them to browse such as event listings, loyalty schemes, and author biog’s. Counters are a prime opportunity for add on sales, however it can be a delicate balancing act as they also need to be kept clean and free of too much clutter. You want customers to feel comfortable in approaching to ask questions or make purchases. If they are given the impression they are interrupting or disturbing the space they may be tempted to just walk out of the store. Finally, think about offering something for free – bookmarks, lollies, stickers or an offer to help yourself to water/coffee as a gesture of hospitality. Your customers will feel a little bit special and it enhances their positive experience leading to more visits and purchases at your store.
Michelle Bansen
Rock Pool Publishing, Dulwich Hill NSW Seizure, Surry Hills NSW
Key dates for 2013 ABIAs: 24 May ABA Conference: 16 - 17 June National Bookshop Day: 10 August Children’s Book Week: 16 - 23 August Indigenous Literacy Day: 4 September
ABA Office Christmas Hours The ABA office will be closed from Monday 24 December through to Wednesday 2 January (inclusive)
ABA Member Service Coordinator News on Bookselling November 2012
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Bookshop profile Hill of Content turns 90
Hill of Content Bookshop’s founder, A H The original building was small and the Spencer was born in 1886 at Balmain, family lived at the rear of the premises. receivership in 2005. The owners of the Sydney. At fourteen he was forced to In 1927, with the lease expiring, Spencer Collins franchises in Sale and Bairnsdale leave school to work in a boot factory. convinced the owners to demolish the organised franchisees to create a new After a few months he left and in 1900 old building and erect a new three-story company to buy the business and he began work at Angus & Robertson one. While this was being done, the franchise rights. The Sale and Bairnsdale where he worked for 22 years under the business was transferred across the road owners - the Watts and Johnston famous bookseller George Robertson. to the Eastern Market for several months families - bought the Hill of Content, One of his regular early jobs was to in 1928. which now operates as an independent deliver books to the Darlinghurst home In its early years visitors and customers store under the Collins umbrella. Its of David Scott Mitchell, whose collection manager and staff have complete included such luminaries as Dame Nellie became the basis for the Mitchell Library. autonomy to buy, market and sell the Melba, John Masefield English poet who books that best reflect the tastes of the was here for the Victorian Centenary Spencer wanted to open his own shops dedicated and longstanding Celebrations in 1934, Lionel Lindsay, Tom bookshop, but not wanting to open in clientele. Roberts, Arthur Streeton, as well as opposition to his employer of two various Governors, and members of the Under this new ownership/ decades, decided to set up on his own in medical and legal professions. At this management model the Hill of Content Melbourne. He borrowed £1000 from the time the Australian Parliament sat at has enjoyed a period of steady growth noted collector H.L. White (uncle of the Victorian Parliament Building just from 2005 to today more than doubling Patrick White) who said: “Try not to lose one block away in Spring Street (while the turnover during this period. The it, but if you do your best and fail and the State Parliament resided at the Royal shop has expanded to cover two floors of lose this money, try not to worry too Exhibition Buildings) and so many the building built by Spencer in 1928 much about it.” The money was lent with prominent politicians frequented the with its staff now eyeing off the third no surety but Spencer was able to pay it shop as well. floor - currently occupied by Collins back with seven percent interest within Booksellers Head Office! three years. Spencer had hoped that his son would join the business but, after surviving five At this time Melbourne was going years service in the RAAF during the war, through a period of recession and Greg Spencer was killed shortly after gangsters were known to haunt the Andrew Robertson, being demobilized when he was struck laneways of this part of Melbourne. Manager, Hill of Content by two cars in succession on a dark and Squizzy Taylor was on the run from rainy Melbourne night. His death was a police having skipped bail and violent major blow to Spencer and although he confrontations in the city streets were continued to run the business for a not uncommon. further four or so years, his heart was no Spencer was told he was crazy to open a longer in it, and in 1951 he sold the bookshop in this seedy part of business. Melbourne and so he set about devising After his retirement Spencer published a name which would cast a positive his autobiographical work, The Hill of connotation to his new shop. The name (1959), which highlighted the Content for the shop came to him during a walk Sydney and Melbourne literary worlds in the Fitzroy Gardens when ‘the from the turn of the century to the end elm-trees and the plane-trees and the of the Second World War. poplars said, “Call it the Hill of Content”’ Upon Spencer’s retirement the shop was And so in 1922 he opened the Hill of purchased by Collins Booksellers and Content at 86 Bourke Street, the operated as a company store from 1952 premises from which the business still until that company went into operates today.
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News on Bookselling Editor Robyn Huppert Advertising enquiries Robyn Huppert Email mail@aba.org.au Entire content copyright © Australian Booksellers Association Disclaimer Advertising and inserts in News on Bookselling are paid for by the advertisers. Their inclusion does not imply endorsement of these products or services by the Australian Booksellers Association