Blogue d'un québécois expatrié en Angleterre. Comme toute forme d'autobiographie est constituée d'une large part de fiction, j'ai décidé de nommer le blogue Vraie Fiction.
Monday, 18 April 2011
Waterstone's: even more stationary?
A quick post before bedtime, about my favourite chain of bookstores, which is starting to fall from grace and might end up in cultural Hell, in my eyes at least. I got this email from Waterstone's tonight, titled: "A New Chapter: Even more stationary, gifts and joyous things". Is it what a bookstore really need? Even more stationary? Don't we have other places to buy stationary? I don't go to a bookshop to buy stationary, I go to a bookshop to buy books! Bestsellers, old classics, forgotten classics, relatively unknown stuff, totally unknown stuff, I expect the place to have a variety of books! I might buy the odd pen or handbook here and there, but I go there for the books. I don't want Waterstone's franchises to be like W.H. Smith's, glorified convenience stores. And I know they have it rough with online shops pumping their clients and everything. But still, selling books is more exciting than selling stationary.
I guess it means that people do not read anymore which is really sad but I don't know what you can do about it!
ReplyDeleteI agree. I like Stationers and Bookshops both but they need to be kept separate.
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