The CBC’s Jian Ghomeshi had an interesting “essay” a couple of days ago on his show “Q” in which he talked about how there was a place within the book retailing landscape for independent, big-box and digital stores. His comments were triggered by the closure of a small bookstore, This Ain’t The Rosedale Library, after apparently failed to pay its rent.
Ghomeshi contends – and I agree – that different types of retailers meet different needs. If you’re looking to purchase the best-seller, then by all means use Indigo or Amazon, or visit the big box book store at your local mall. But if you’re looking to really experience the book-buying process and get insight from people who live and breath books, it makes sense to patronage the independent book store.
For all the focus on e-commerce, buying online is an antiseptic experience. You surf, search, place into cart, and pay. There’s nothing romantic or visceral about buying a book online, although it is convenient and relatively hassle-free.
Going to book store, however, means smelling, touching and browsing books. You can enjoy spending time at a book store even if you don’t make a purchase. There’s something pleasurable about immersing yourself within the analog-ness of all that paper. And there’s something exhilarating about walking out of a store with a book as opposed to having to wait a few days for the courier to show up.
Call me old school but book stores, particularly independents, are a key part of our retail and cultural fabric so here’s hoping they don’t disappear anytime soon.
