The next
chapter
Local bookstores join the Internet sales movement as
a way to stay alive in an increasingly online world
BY JOSH LINTEREUR
PULSE REPORTER
Eugene lost one of its oldest in
dependent booksellers this month
when the owners of the Book Mark
decided to retire rather than contin
ue on in the face of dwindling profits.
The closing of the more than
30-year-old business is part of a
decade-long national attrition of in
dependent bookstores, which has
been spurred on by the arrival of big
box chains and the still-evolving In
ternet book market. With more than
20 locally owned bookstores,
Eugene's independent book market
hasn't eroded nearly as quickly
thanks to a book-hungry population
that is supportive of locally owned
business. But in the long run those
local values alone may not be
enough to sustain them all, and the
savviest are re-thinking the way they
do business.
"Eugene prides itself on being an
independent-minded community
that supports independent business
es," said Evon Smith, whose parents
founded the Smith Family Bookstore
more than 30 years ago. "But every
time I say that I have to remind my
self how many independent busi
nesses have gone out of business in
the last 10 years."
For Smith and other local used
bookstores, the presence of behe
moth discounters like Wal-Mart,
Barnes & Noble and Borders aren't
their biggest concern. While those
corporate-owned businesses do a
significant amount of business by
discounting new copies of the latest
bestsellers, most independents only
sell a handful of new books (if any at
all), leaving the chains to compete
with one another.
For most used booksellers, which
includes virtually all of Eugene's
remaining independent bookstores,
the most significant competitive
force comes from the Internet.
And some have chosen to fight fire
¥
Lauren Wimer | Senior photographer
Local independent bookstores struggle to survive in a market changed by discount bookdealers and
the Internet. Many stores here in Eugene are learning to adapt.
with fire.
At Emerald City Fine Books, a
specialty used bookseller located
downtown, the strategy has become
very simple.
"If you don't go online, you go out
of business," said associate manag
er Paco Schiraldi. Emerald City went
online seven years ago with Abe
books (www.abebooks.com), an on
line book market that lists over
13,000 booksellers. Schiraldi
estimates that the store now does
more than two-thirds of its business
in cyberspace.
As foot traffic decreases and
booksellers do an increasing
amount of their business online, it
forces manyto reconsiderthe idea
of having an actual store.
"The majority of independent
bookstores in America have closed
in the past 10 years, but a lot of them
went online," said Scott Landfield,
who co-owns Tsunami Books in
South Eugene. "You're almost an ar
tifact when you have an open shop."
Like Emerald City Fine Books,
Tsunami has used the Internet to its
advantage. By selling books online
at Abebooks, Landfield said
the store's sales increased by
BOOKS, page 11
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