I'm not going to give myself a huge list of resolutions at the start of the year because I just don't have a clue yet what I want to accomplish (aside from the writerly obvious). I was really bothered by an article I read a couple last month about Powells Books though and it gave me an idea. Here's a bit:
And although she hesitates to come up with specific plans, she seems to know what the problem is: competition from Amazon and warehouse clubs; flat revenue on the Internet side and a lack of loyalty from people who order online; unknown technological changes that could involve downloadable books; and a general compression of the field.
"It's been a rocky couple of years for the business," she said. She expects a markedly different industry in five years.
"It's probably as tense as it's ever been," Publishers Weekly's Milliot said of the business climate. "The whole industry, from the publishers down to the bookstores, is uncertain where things are going to go. No one worries that the physical book is going to disappear. But they're all fighting for a smaller slice of the pie."
The trick, Emily Powell said, will be maintaining the culture of the store -- not just the bohemian tone but stocking books that are hard to find in other independent stores, such as conservative and Christian tomes, which her father insists are usually blind spots -- and preparing for the unknown.
Despite her lack of seasoning, industry observers are mostly heartened that the company will stay in the family, the best way to maintain Powell's spirit. Milliot calls Emily Powell "a known quantity."
"We're in a very antiquated industry in many respects," she said. "You have to like bookselling, not just books, in order to bring change."
What got me was that lack of loyalty from online customers. I'm one of the people they were talking about and I need to change that because I love that store, it is an amazing store, and I hate the thought that it might one day just not be in the world.
We need places like Powells; we just need them to be there.
So my first resolution this year is that every book I buy, for myself or others this year, will be from Powells*. Sometimes I might pay full price for a new copy, sometimes I'll get them on sale and sometimes I'll buy them used (because standard used from Powells is pretty much as good as new) but that's where I'm buying my books. This is not because I think amazon is evil or B&N and Borders are trying to take over the world, it's just because I like Powells and I should be willing to put my dollars into a company I like.
So there you go, I'm supporting Powells this year. I feel pretty good about this and quite frankly, I'm hoping it is going to be how it will be from now on, forever. It's a nice way to give back to a place that gives us so much just by being there.
*Okay, I do have $100 in credit at the local used bookstore but I think that buying from the local used store is also a good thing and I doubt Powells would begrudge me that! (They have an awesome polar lit section - how can I resist?)
