Over the past 8 weeks I’ve featured some local booksellers with the aim to get to know their challenges in their chosen field, the highs, the lows and everything in between. Mostly to shine a light on them in this literature space, to let them know that we see them and their hard work. And hopefully to encourage you to follow suit and support their work.
This was inspired by seeing a lot of the Bookamoso followers buying from commercial stores – and sometimes going to these stores because of convenience. The local booksellers are very convenient in my opinion because most of them are mobile and they offer courier service across the country so one doesn’t have to go to extreme lengths to get a stash of their favourite books. Don’t get me wrong, I still love the physical bookstore – I’m still old skool like that. But I absolutely love the fact that most of these indie book distributors stock mostly books that are self-published and African authored. This provides readers access to books that sometimes wouldn’t have been in the traditional bookstores.
In the first feature with Zenazi Media owner Xolie MaNgcobo Langa, I learnt that sometimes letting go of a job you’re not enjoying could lead you to being blessed with doing what you really love. Xolie is a former journalist, who decided to leave her job and do what she loves the most. I also learnt that it is true what they say about not ever working a day in your life if you’re doing something you love. Xolie sells books from the moment she wakes up till she sleeps, from the boot of her car or from her basket which she takes everywhere she goes. If you ever encounter Xolie at gym – best believe, you will walk away having bought a book! I loved that Xolie also works with other indie distributors if she’s struggling with stock, some of which were also featured in #QuestionswithBookamoso. This shows that the pie is big enough for everyone and if the indie distributors stick together – much can be done in ensuring that books reach the market.
Bobo Lukhele was next, who is a journalist by profession and she runs BookHive. Along with her friends, Bobo created BookHive as a bookclub which has now morphed into an NPO which contributes positively to the community in the form of school talks/visits and book donations. The lesson here is that your business can turn around and be a positive contributor to your community. I like the fact that Bobo joined hands with her friends and decided to do this apart from just attending the book club and running the business.
Nonhlanhla Ngwaxaxa runs Cocoa Butter Books in such an admirable manner. I couldn’t help but notice that out of all the featured book distributors, she’s the only one who is consistent with attending a number of popular markets in her beloved Soweto. Although she herself isn’t from Soweto, she’s made it her home. A love for books, coupled with her business science degree has ensured that Cocoa Butter grows steadily. One other thing that one can do is immerse yourself in the events that take place in your neighbourhood like how Nonhlanhla has done. In her being at places like the Soweto Theatre when they have markets, and her home town of Vosloorus – the footprint for Cocoa Butter Books is solid. She’s made wonderful connections as well through this business strategy.
Next up was AfroKulcha director, Nonku Magi-Africa. A multi-dimensional business woman in my eyes. Nonku has a sister company which focuses on traveling around the African continent, AfroKulcha Travel. Through the frustration of a lack of African books, Nonku was inspired to source African literature and sell them. The lesson here is that when you are unhappy about something – you do something about it. You can turn your hobby into a business. Through AfroKulcha’s network, Nonku has formed a solid client base for AfroKulcha Travel and it ties in very well with the African literature featured on the online shop. Check out Nonku’s weekly Cheese and Wine evening at the AfroKulcha showroom, follow the tagged pages for more information.
After four features with women book distributors – I gave the gentlemen in the game a chance to shine as well. First up was Cebo Nzama who owns Zeb Media – a mobile and now recently online book store. Cebo had a plan to develop himself and signed up for an English Communication short course – and that’s when his love for books began. I like the fact that Cebo has a whole range of clients all over the country including the Mother City. Marketing Zeb Media is a breeze for Cebo as its something he’s always imagined himself doing and he always encourages the authors he works with to also be a part of the marketing of their work so that sales can come through.
Bongani Tau of Afrocentric Literature was next in the feature. Bongani registered the company in early 2018 and out of fear of failure – he only actively began working on the business in November 2018. I see fear of failure as a common thread for lots of businesses, myself included. But once one takes that leap of faith – everything seems to work out. Bongani voiced out a challenge which I believe a lot of independent distributors encounter. That’s having to buy from publishing houses which require people to buy a large stock.
I’ve also seen how important it is for the book distributors to actually read the books they sell to their customers. One such book seller is Vocal Minds owner, Charles Bande who credits his love for reading to his neighbour who borrowed him a book and he’s since loved reading. Charles has since become a self-confessed book addict who also penned the hashtag #TwoBooksaMonth last year to his followers – which resulted in a growing number of book orders and followers for him. Social media usage is also a very important strategy in this business.
The last store that was featured was Lotus Bookstore which is Cape Town based and specializes in pre-loved books. Ran by Damien Terblanche who began his book selling business due to people being jealous of the books on his bookcase which he featured on his blog. I say jealous because there’s nothing like book envy when a friend has a copy that looks so yummy, good enough to be on your bookcase not theirs. This has worked out for Damien as he has since began sourcing and selling books to many other people outside of his circle of friends. His passion for books – led him to his purpose and sharing his love for literature with his friends and loved ones.
There are a number of uniform challenges which I noticed with this feature and I am hoping with time, these will be a thing of the past. I hope that suppliers will no longer have to struggle with having to buy large stock at a go. Which doesn’t really help them on the profit front. The journey will be long but it will be fruitful. I trust that having created this series will encourage you to like and follow all these pages, and perhaps commit to buying from them on a quarterly basis.
What a journey it’s been. I’ll be setting up a directory of the book distributors and if you are one, and you’d like to be included – please email me.
