The London Book Fair, originally scheduled for March 2021, will be held June 29 to July 1, "to provide the best possible opportunity of creating a live event where the publishing industry can reconnect and do business," according to Reed Exhibitions, which cited feedback from LBF participants showing that 89% of exhibitors and 76% of visitors believe face-to-face meetings are extremely important for business. LBF plans to return to its usual spring dates in 2022.
In addition, Andy Ventris, who joined Reed Exhibitions in 2013, has been appointed LBF's new director. Darren Johnson, CEO at Reed Exhibitions UK, said, "We are delighted that Andy Ventris will be taking on the role of director. Working together with the experienced and passionate LBF team, we are looking forward to bringing the industry back together in 2021."
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| Andy Ventris | |
Ventris called the decision to move LBF to June the best opportunity for hosting a live event: "Given the dynamic nature of the pandemic we will continue to closely monitor the situation, and if the current outlook changes will make a final decision on the live event's feasibility by the end of March 2021 at the very latest. We want to give all our partners, exhibitors and visitors this date to work towards, as we appreciate how much planning and resource goes into preparation for a trade fair of this scale. We thank the publishing community for its ongoing support and we look forward to meeting again in 2021."
Nigel Nathan, managing director of LBF's venue, Olympia London, commented: "Working with the LBF team, we're putting a wide range of safety measures in place ready for this big event--sensible measures to make sure the show is as enjoyable and memorable as always for the publishing community. We can't wait to welcome everyone back."
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Belgium drastically tightened its Covid-19 restrictions Monday, but in "the now desolate alleys of central Brussels, one type of business is keeping the light on during one of Europe's toughest coronavirus lockdowns: the bookstore," AFP (via France 24) reported, adding that Belgium considers books "an essential good."
"In a period of anguish and uncertainty that brings us back to our own mortality, the book probably remains the best food for thought and reflection," said bookseller Marc El Khadem of Librairie Tropismes.
Noting that French booksellers are still fighting to stay open under new restrictions, he added: "We sympathize, we feel absolutely in solidarity with our French colleagues--and sad for their readers."
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| Readings reopened. | |
Booksellers in Melbourne, Australia, welcomed back customers for the first weekend since restrictions eased, ABC News reported.
"There was so much build-up and anxiety and anticipation. We're exhausted, we're excited, we're a little bit nervous and so emotional," said Leesa Lambert, owner of Neighbourhood Books, Northcote. She felt a sense of relief when the reopening went smoothly. The shop is limited to five customers at a time. "We've also had to increase our staffing levels so that there is a person who is able to make sure that we don't go over that person limit. We've put a time limit of 10 minutes into play as well, which means that we're minimizing that face-to-face contact and we're enabling as many people to come through the shop as possible but we don't need to keep records as bars and pubs do." She added that the reaction from customers had been overwhelmingly supportive: "We've been really delighted and a little bit surprised."
Readings posted on Facebook: "Our first in-store customers in months! What a wonderful feeling to know readers are happily finding the book they need on our shelves again. All our shops (except Readings State Library) are open today again for browsing and we're doing a special welcome back book giveaway for all purchases over $30! We want to make sure we stay open too, so there are a few safety requirements, which include facemasks, hand sanitizer, physical distancing, customer limits in shops, and limiting your browsing to 15 minutes." --Robert Gray