Publishers express "utter disappointment" over book sales at fair

Publishers had high hopes for the final day of the book fair, especially since it coincided with Friday, a weekly holiday. They expected large crowds of visitors and a surge in book sales. However, the turnout was relatively low, leaving most publishers deeply disappointed with their sales. Although the number of visitors increased slightly in the evening, sales remained poor.

Many publishers reported that book sales this year were nearly half of what they were last year. Even during the pandemic, more books were sold compared to this year. On the last day of the fair, Friday (February 28), publishers and authors expressed their frustration over disappointing sales.

According to stall workers from Prothoma Prokashan, their publishing house mainly releases political books. However, due to political changes and other factors, readership has declined, leading to lower sales. Several other publishing houses, including Anyadhara, Agamee Prakashani, Mawla Brothers, and Kothaprokash, also reported disappointing sales.

Mujibur Rahman Khoka, publisher of Vidya Prakashani, told Views Bangladesh that book sales usually increase following political changes, but this time, that did not happen. "Over the 28 days of the fair, sales have been extremely disappointing. I have never seen such a calm environment—no political unrest, no turmoil—yet, there are no buyers."

Explaining the low turnout, Khoka said, "Many writers, publishers, and readers did not attend the book fair this year. There could be various reasons behind this, but no effort was made to attract them either. If the right environment had been created, this year's book fair could have been a fantastic event, but that did not happen. Several factors contributed to this decline."

He added, "Since it was the last day and a Friday, there should have been a massive crowd from the morning, but instead, you could count the number of visitors on the fairground. We are very disappointed. Sales were even worse than during the pandemic."

Confirming the decline in sales, writer and researcher Tapan Bagchi pointed out two major reasons. "It's true that book sales have been low. I have attended the book fair every year since 1985, and based on my daily observations, sales were genuinely down. There are two key reasons: first, due to the changing political landscape, many people were hesitant and did not publish enough books.

Secondly, many people simply did not attend the fair. Concerns over minor incidents and a general sense of unease kept some visitors away. Some even publicly announced their decision not to attend. Popular authors, whose presence usually attracts large crowds for autographs, were absent this year. Notably, Zafar Iqbal, Nirmalendu Goon, Anisul Hoque, Selina Hossain, and Moinul Ahsan Saber did not visit the fair even once. Their absence resulted in a lack of the usual excitement and enthusiasm among visitors."

He also mentioned that factors like rain and the approaching month of Ramadan contributed to lower sales. However, he observed that online book sales had increased.

Author Mohit Kamal, who has attended the book fair for the past 35 years, also noticed a drop in sales. "Usually, families visit the fair, browse books, and make purchases. But this year, that trend was weaker. People came to the fair but did not buy as many books as before."

Kader Babu, publisher of Babui Prakashani, echoed similar sentiments. "Fridays at the fair are typically very lively, but this time, it didn't happen. Book sales were significantly lower. Based on our calculations, sales reached only about one-third of what we expected."

This year, the book fair, held at Bangla Academy and Suhrawardy Udyan, featured 708 publishers occupying 1,084 units. Additionally, 37 institutions, including Bangla Academy, had pavilion spaces. The fair allocated 384 one-unit stalls, 219 two-unit stalls, 61 three-unit stalls, and 23 four-unit stalls. A special section for children included 120 units from 74 publishers, while the Little Magazine Corner had 130 stalls near the open stage at Suhrawardy Udyan.

According to the fair’s information center, 3,299 new books were published by February 28. Bangla Academy reported that books were sold at a 25% discount at all stalls. By February 27, Bangla Academy alone had sold books worth 6,165,593 BDT in 27 days.