From the President

The past few months have been good to general booksellers which lifted annual book sales, largely due to the enormous interest in Zuma’s Keepers which broke all records. With “state capture” a focus of interest for politicians and most thinking South Africans, this book arrived at just the right time for retailers and our only complaint was that we could not get enough! Digital copies were passed from reader to reader, but many people bought their hard copies too as soon as they could get one. Improved sales have continued into the New Year. It shows that we have a large market for books if only we can offer the right material. We commented recently on the sales also of Dudu Busani-Dube’s trilogy which had drawn an unprecedented demand from readers interested in fiction reflecting life in the townships. While sales of these books have slowed, partly due to their unavailability for extended periods, we have seen a number of other titles appearing, and we hope that we will now be able to sell into this new and growing market.
 
School books were supplied in different areas with varying degrees of efficiency. With a large reduction in the amount budgeted in Eastern Cape, and reduction in spending in the Cape, booksellers experienced an overall decline in sales.

In KZN many Section 21 schools placed orders with their booksellers as they had in the past. The Department objected to the prices some were paying and advised them that they would not provide funding. According to the Department over R30 million of orders were affected – only a part of them being those of SABA members. After meeting with members SABA agreed to seek an opinion on the legality of the Department’s position and we were advised that the Department is acting illegally. The department was advised and we asked for an urgent meeting but have been ignored. Although we are not contributing to further legal action, we believe some members and other booksellers may be taking the matter to court and we will be interested in the outcome. Our legal opinion will certainly be of assistance to them.

Meanwhile, although the school term started weeks ago, some schools have not received their books and we believe the department may genuinely be short of funds. The only solution for many parents is to buy the books themselves, and we hope that this will lead to better sales on the bookshops. Booksellers have in the past ordered the books for the schools awaiting the transfer of funds before delivering, and we are grateful to the publishers for taking back orders cancelled due to the Department’s actions.
 
The opening of the academic year in the Universities has been disrupted by staff strikes and by student action arising from confusion caused by the late promise of free education for many more students. Enrolments at UNISA are running well behind the anticipated numbers due to the staff strike. And enrolled students were also unable to download their study material for a time due to pressure on the system while the many late applications were made. During the staff strike enterprising EFF members assisted the students to put in their membership applications for a small fee: They took them around the corner to an internet café.

For students to enrol and receive “free education” their applications must be approved and their funding must be confirmed by NSFAS. NSFAS is understandably under great pressure due to the many late applications, and we wonder whether the applications will be approved quickly so that they can get on with their studies in time. Many modules now are completed in six months, so there is little room for delays. There have been strikes by the students mainly around the administration of free education and senior NSFAS officials visited KZN in February. The Unisa Campus was closed and students were arrested after they had invaded the library damaging books with fire extinguishers and locked lecturers in their offices. The Durban University of Technology was also closed for a period. Disruption in the first weeks of the academic year interrupts the academic routine and some students do not buy their books.

The Cape Town Book Sale drew good crowds and led to good book sales last year. SABA’s sponsorship made the event possible. As we did not recover our costs, we will not be participating this year, but the event may well be taken over by the Cape Town booksellers and we hope it will become a part of the Cape Town calendar.

The strong rand which we are enjoying at present is a sign of better things in South Africa and gives us the opportunity to sell more books at lower prices, expanding our reading population. I do hope that the improved sales figures proves to be the new trend and that all our members will benefit.