Book club boost

The international lockdown caused by Covid-19 has resulted in one entrepreneurial bookseller reporting a 52 per cent rise in sales in just four weeks.

Rare Birds Book Club was launched in 2017 to provide the latest and best in contemporary women’s fiction. Books that deliver gripping plots, fascinating stories, amazing heroines and, when the occasion calls for it, smouldering love interests have found favour with an increasing number of new readers.

The monthly book delivery service, complimented by an online digital book club, has become a welcome distraction and meaningful network for women across the world.

Rachel Woods, founder of The Rare Birds Book Club

Since its emergence onto the scene three years ago, the Edinburgh-based business has seen growth of 86 per cent and 57 per cent year on year respectively. However, following the introduction of nationwide lock down measures, the service has seen subscriptions rise by more than half.

The club works through a £10 monthly subscription service. Members get the chance to pick between two surprise books each month, or upgrade to both, before joining like-minded souls in an online forum to discuss the books.

At the beginning of the year the club was just about to hit 1,000 subscribers per month. Of those, around 51 per cent of people were buying for themselves and 49 per cent were buying books as gifts.

But, since the lock down emphasis on sales has shifted firmly towards gift purchasing with hundreds of orders coming in with requests to include messages of consolation, comfort and togetherness.

The company’s pay-as-you go option has also proved popular, with people looking to enjoy the service without having to commit longer-term.

In addition to a rise in UK memberships the business has also recorded a marked increase in global sales with 10 per cent of all orders now being shipped to more than 23 countries, including as far as Japan and New Zealand.

The club has managed to keep going during the lockdown because all the mail outs are currently being done from the spare room of founder Rachel Wood’s flat, rather than the company’s headquarters in Edinburgh city centre.

“My spare room is basically now a small warehouse, but it means we've been able to stay fully operational during lockdown. Once books are picked, packed and ready to go, they are collected by Royal Mail in a seamless operation that is completely contactless. My staff and I are all isolated in our own homes and have different responsibilities to keep us ticking over – I do the big send outs and individual orders are done elsewhere,” said Rachel, 31, who studied Philosophy at university and then went on to get a Master’s in Creative Writing.