Independent bookshops are seeking the support of the government in their battle with Amazon. They claim the internet giant, which paid only £3.2 million in corporation tax after recording total UK sales of over £4 billion, is destroying the traditional bookshop and that they are fighting for survival on an unlevel playing field.
The French government has taken action to protect bookshops against Amazon
A total of 73 independent book retailers were forced to shut up shop across the UK in the past 12 months. This means that there are now only 1,028 book shops in total in the UK today which, given the fact that there were 1,535 to be found on the high street in 2005, is a rather concerning drop.
Owner of Broadway Bookshop in east London, Jane Howe, believes that the time has come for the government to step in and defend struggling businesses.
She says; “We really need the government to do something to protect independent bookshops.
“We are the heart of the community – sometimes you are the only person that a customer has spoken to all week.
“If the government want to keep any type of integrity in any high street they’ve got to support small businesses.”
British booksellers are now hoping that the government will follow the lead of their French counterparts, who this week announced a £7.7 million investment to fight back against the “destroyer of bookshops” Amazon. Much of this funding will be used to update the facilities within traditional shops and help set up online services.
However, perhaps more significantly, French cultural minister Aurélie Filippetti is considering pushing through legislation which would ban Amazon from offering free postage and from discounting books by 5 per cent – which, at present, is perfectly legal in France.
In a speech to French booksellers, she said; “Everyone has had enough of Amazon, which by dumping practices, slashes prices to get a foothold in markets only to raise them as soon as they have established a virtual monopoly.
“The book and reading sector is facing competition from certain sites using very legal means to enter the French and European book market – [this] is destroying bookshops.”
Do you think the UK government would consider a similar investment and legislation drive in order to save independent high street bookshops, or are they more likely to side with Amazon, a large and influential internet company, in this matter?
Previous Post
Primark Teams Up With Online Fashion Retailer Asos
