The Press FRIDAY, APRIL 11, 1975. A threat to book shops

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33815, 11 April 1975, Page 8

The Press FRIDAY, APRIL 11, 1975. A threat to book shops

If the Minister of Education (Mr Amos) persists in his decision to call tenders for the supply of school text-books some book-sellers in New Zealand are likely to be forced out of business. Text-books form about 25 per cent of the trade of retail book-sellers. For some shops they provide the guaranteed turnover which allows the shop to remain in business and to carry a considerable stock of more general books for which the demand is less assured. Any reduction in the number of book-shops, or in the range of titles carried by the shops, works against the interests of the book-buying public in New Zealand, a country in which reading and ready access to books are still important in the leisure time of many people.

The Government’s decision comes after three years of wrangling between book-sellers and the Department of Education about the size of the discount which should be given on educational boo Ks. Smce 1963 the discount has been 20 per cent. When that agreement was made nearly 80 per cent of text-books came from stocks outside New Zealand. The mark-up on these was larger than on books from stocks held in the country. In 12 years the proportions have been reversed As a result, many book-sellers find it barely profitable to give the 20 per cent discount to schools on all text-books: some even claim that they are handling text-books at a loss, especially when higher wages and storage costs are taken into account. The Government has refused to allow their request for a reduction of the discount to 10 per cent on books with a smaller mark-up: instead, Mr Amos has countered by calling for tenders, which would remove the text-book trade from most retailers.

While the profit on text-books is too small, the advantage of having a trade in these books is obviously small. Nevertheless, without the volume of sales provided by text-books, some shops would be barely capable of staying in business. The text-book trade should earn a reasonable return for the shop-keeper. Book-shops carrying a wide range of publications are an important aspect of the cultural life — even of the political life — of the country. Bv their existence and by their variety, these shops also make an important contribution to the quality of education. Mr Amos may fairly argue that schools should obtain their books at a reasonable price: and text books are frequently expensive books. But he is running the risk of upsetting the delicate economic balance of the whole book trade for the sake of what might prove to be no more than a modest saving. That he should “ explore ” the idea of buying by tender is fair enough. He should not. however, forget that the book shops have an important part to play in " continuing ” education.