Where the Pipeline
Ends
FROM PUBLISHING
TRENDS (SEPTEMBER 2003)
At
the nethermost end of the pipeline — that being the
remainder and overstock dealers — the jury is still
out on whether publisher supply chain initiatives are
drying up their business. “More publishers have tightened
up than not,” says Mel Shapiro, President of
publisher and overstock dealer Book Sales Inc.
“Some of them have cut their print runs down considerably,
which is not exactly making us thrilled.” Publishers
that once tossed off six-figure fiction remainders are
policing their print runs more closely, he says. But
never fear: “The remainder business is going to go on
and on as long as publishers have to print to satisfy
author advances, and so on.” Others are perhaps more
bullish on the subject. “Probably the hurt level has
taken off more than remainders in the last few years,”
offers CIROBE co-founder Brad Jonas, explaining
that returns seem to be gaining momentum over titles
remaindered by publishers. Jonas says returns are happening
“more quickly and in a larger volume” than in the past
— as publishers tighten up inventory, so booksellers
return books with greater haste.
For a dealer of higher-end remainders, publishers’ efforts
are receiving a blunt appraisal. “Things are the same
as they’ve always been,” says Robin Moody, President
of Daedalus Books. “There’s always talk that
publishers need to tighten up their print runs and that
they’re going to be more economical. But we’ve never
really seen a major change.” Lower first print runs,
he says, require speedier decisions about a second print
run, which are made with less market feedback — “And
at that point you’re just as liable to make a mistake.”
Moody also attributes hefty remainder numbers to the
growing use of overseas printers — “You can’t call up
Hong Kong and say, ‘Give me a reprint,’” he says — in
addition to more publishers buying packaged titles,
which may only be offered in substantial quantities.
Then there are the mysterious ways of the corporate
publishing world. Moody tells of publishers changing
the price on a title (the old one gets remaindered)
or changing the cover (ditto). The pièce de résistance:
a movie tie-in with a new cover gets rolled out (the
old cover gets remaindered), then the movie ends and
the tie-ins are all remaindered — as the publisher reprints
the first cover again. As Moody dryly observes: “It’s
all done according to huge corporation rules.”
©2003
Publishing Trends
