Attention Customers:
A frightening phenomenon is taking place within the bookselling industry that is threatening the very survival of independent bookstores. The phenomenon to which we are referring is the proliferation of superstores, chains and more recently on-line booksellers. These corporate entities, have aggressively targeted the customer base of independent bookstores ( a customer base many of us have spent decades building). Their huge competitive advantage allows them to purchase large volumes of books which they are then able to sell at cheaper prices. They are also starting to capitalize on previously ignored markets (women, communities of colour, gays and lesbians etc) by showcasing historically marginalized authors – many of whom gained their original audiences in independent bookstores. Although we have acted decisively to retain our customer base, the result has been a marked decline in sales and in many cases the ultimate demise of countless independent bookstores across North America. As independent booksellers, we have far more than a simple retail relationship to the customers that we serve. We bring our own unique sensibilities to our jobs – a sensibility that is rooted in the communities that we serve. In the final analysis, the ultimate survival of independent bookstores depends on you, the book-buying public. Please do not allow us to become yet another endangered species. Thank You.

PS You may also want to read Dorothy Allison's Introduction to the 1998-1999 Feminist Bookstore Catalogue.