They are idealists, Digital Natives or successful globalizers. With your different programs you are fighting for cultural diversity. DW asked five publishers, according to their strategy.
Of state for culture, ministrin Monika Grütters has launched a new publisher’s price, of course likes to hope. Nevertheless, the economic prospects of many independent publishers, following the insolvency of one of the most important book distributor is still uncertain. How would you judge the current Situation? Here are five very different answers are:
Jan Wenzel, Spector Books
Spector Books since 2001, first as a magazine “Spector cut+paste”, since 2008, of the three publishers, Jan Wenzel, Anne König and Markus Dreßen-run publishing house also publishes books, now fifty per year. The publisher, based in Leipzig, works with many designers, picture editors and copy-editors. The ambitious program: “A Form that brings together different fields of contemporary art production in visual arts, photography, architecture, Literary.”
How does your business model?
Books in several languages, belonging to the publishing model by Spector Books
For us an advantage that we are a small but globally operating publisher. We use half for the German market, half of them for international. Very many of our books, appeared currently, for example, the Bauhaus, or the book of Alexander Kluge and Ben Lerner are at the same time in German and English. Our titles are often developed in collaboration with institutions, so we can distribute the cost of Translation.
The independent publishers are in need of a structural support?
If you look around in Austria or Switzerland, there’s no such thing as an Instrument of economic and cultural promotion since a very long time. As a small German publisher, it is because some of the titles in a competition, you can not suffice. But one can also see the importance of people-run publishing houses are, for a broad and interesting program. Publishers of a certain size be afraid, rather to risk a certain title, authors, positions in the program. Small business act, perhaps, subjective, risky, and may be closer to changes.
Frauke Hampel, Connewitzer Verlagsbuchhandlung
The Connewitzer Verlagsbuchhandlung was founded in 1990 by Peter Hinke in Leipzig’s district of Connewitz. Peter Hinke was published between 1988 and 1989, the underground magazine “Sno’Boy”, which was the starting point of the publishing house.
What is your business model?
The special thing is: We are a publishing house, two bookshops. We make only two to six books per year, and the publisher has its registered office in the bookstore. There, we are close to the customers, can look, what to read, what we want to do it themselves. And of course, we can sell there directly.
Title of a book in a beautiful design, the Connewitzer publisher sets the book’s plot value
Our bookstore is the place a kind of small village where everything comes together. Many young authors, coming from the German literature Institute, and illustrators from the Academy for graphic and book art. The meeting in action, and which often arise books.
It relates to the insolvency of the Book wholesaler Koch, Neff & Volckmar (KNV) in February?
To us, it relates to two-compartment. As a publisher of open invoices from December, has not paid KNV. As a bookstore: Many titles are not available, some reports also agree. It is a very unsafe Situation. The insolvency money is to 30. April paid. How is it, then, starting in may, is still open. It is very uncertain, because it is also dependent.
Christiane Glad Man, Glad Man Publishing
“Digitisation is, for me, is a culturally highly interesting process of change that brings people new possibilities,” writes Christiane Frohmann on your website. Among these new possibilities, it is for you to run a publisher with the resources of the Internet.
It relates to the KNV-insolvency?
No, not directly, because I produce on demand, so no major requirements. This is the title of the book-trade has not so much in the range.
What is the Problem for publishers, the produce on demand?
Publisher Christiane re happy man on the Internet conference:publica
At the Moment, much of it suffers, especially the book of acts are not connected with the work and sales structures of the new Player, the new, small independent publishers that make a lot of online, correctly, and that you can’t actually do it as easily as you would like. I think a lot of bookstores will find our programs really well. But it simply means too much Stress, too much work for you to sell these books. You would have to use different billing models, and many actions simply don’t have the time.
With the direct selling and direct contact with book dealers, without intermediary, without the wholesalers, I’m actually quite successful.
Ursi Anna Aeschbacher, Publishing House Of Bread Soup
The small Swiss publishing house with the conscious unglamourös chosen name since fifteen years. In addition to your own publishing Ursi Anna aeschbacher works as a graphic designer, an Illustrator, a writer and editor for various other publishers, and as the spokesperson for “Swips”, Swiss Independent Publishers, the German-language independent publishers in Switzerland.
How does the publisher support in Switzerland?
Ursi Anna Aeschbacher in its own publishing house “bread soup”
There is this promotion for three years. It is based on sales, small publishers receive a small grant of 5000 francs in the year. For the large publishers with a high turnover, there are up to 80,000 Swiss francs in the year. You would like to support the business ability.
The KNV-insolvency also applies to the Swiss publishers?
Many also have about KNV deliver, therefore, almost all more or less affected, especially small and medium-sized. KNV had made for Swiss deliveries for bookstores, good deals, and has just ordered books – they could not influence it. Our own publisher has not specifically Swiss subjects, therefore, the sales in Germany is not high and the damage.
What do Publishers and publishers to protect themselves?
Above all, we need a much better exchange among themselves and with the media, the graphic designers and printers, and illustrators, all of which have something to do with the books, need to talk more. So not insanely difficult-earned money somewhere else is going. Especially now, where the sales go, contrary to all official statements, Yes, and drastically.
Peter Graf, publisher of cultural memory
In the Berlin publishing house with the unusual name have been idealists. The publisher there for two and a half years, in each of which eight books a year were published.
What makes your publishing program?
All of our books are a look into the past, to look at issues that plague us currently, from a different perspective and possibly get some answers. So we have published, for example, a Drama by Voltaire a new Translation: “The fanaticism or Mohammed”, a critique of the book religions. Since it is a question of how radicalisation by these religions influence on society, on people – a question that is of concern to us today, massively.
Or there is the life story of a German economic refugee in the 18th century. Century who has actually experienced what today’s refugees, people experience. It is a matter of Thinking again to break up and to bring a bit of heat in this discussion.
How does your publishing model?
Publisher Peter Graf
The special feature of our company is that it works like a classic publisher. We are five people, earn all your money in the book business, in other publishers or in other contexts, and we have jointly established a company (GmbH), these books that we want to make possible. We pay no salaries, the money goes to a hundred percent again in the book production. There are silent partners, who support us in the Background, either by small amounts of money or Engagement, actors who read for us, the people who transcribe for us texts or proofreading… we are also a Community spirit directs.
This kind of books, you can really only make, if one takes the economic pressure out of it. Our program works very well, but only under this specification. The publisher should also not be greater. We don’t want to hire people, but we want to develop our program further and to the adjustment screws not turning.
Are you affected by the KNV-insolvency?
Solid. You will be punished for it, if you had a good Christmas business. We have lost a very large sum. Like many other smaller publishers. 35,000 euros, which is an enormous amount of money that we will meet again never. This is not existence-threatening, because our structure is the way it is, but we would have been able to work for a year in peace – and now, that is 35,000 euros. This makes the Work much more difficult.
There should be a structural publishing promotion, in a similar way in Austria and Switzerland?
I know the Swiss model very well, because I started as a publisher in Switzerland. The Swiss model is not easily transferred, because the number of publishers in Germany is, of course, much larger. A good approach to now, launched the publishing price, which is analogous to transfer funds to the book trade price may be a lot of small publishers.
I’m not sure if you should put on a state funding that will make the books. It always needs the private Respond to the environment changes. You can search for new models.
How could the appearance of new models?
I myself have a different publisher, Walde and Graf in Berlin, with which I earn my money, because I sell all the books in the range, but I also produce books for third parties, for example the Süddeutsche Zeitung. In other facilities, I give these books then again to the range. This is also a kind of mixed calculation. I can justify my existence on a plurality of legs, and I’m not at the mercy of book sales at the cash register exposed to.
My editorial independence I get by, that I do not (or also) realize also other projects run by the book trade. As we develop book ideas and deliver finished books – since we are not a service provider in an area where there is also a growing demand, because the capacity in the publishing houses are there, in order to develop in a big way all of the titles. This is a niche that you can occupy and thus, a good survival chance.
Andreas Rosteck, edition.FotoTapeta
As a symbolic Pat on the shoulder, “keep it up!”, felt Andreas Rostek the prize, the Kurt Wolff Foundation 2019 awarded. Since the founding of the publishing house in 2007, the blue books of the Edition to tell “the history and stories of our Eastern neighbours”. Andreas Rostek works in addition to his publishing activities as a business journalist for Deutsche Welle.
You must be a Masochist to start a publishing house?
No, but you have to bring daring, foolishness and joy.
What is a prerequisite for the Survival of independent publishers?
The blue Cover is a hallmark of the edition.fotoTapeta
The readiness for a full measure of self-exploitation. With commercial sense answer, is quite difficult. But there are also instruments and funding, for example, for Translations from foreign languages, which are quite essential for us. Translation support, such as, for example, the work of the colleagues of the Georgian book fair guest country, which was fantastic. The result was great, we were able to make beautiful books.
Also, the Polish book Institute in Krakow has done over the years of enthusiastic work and what came to interest in Polish literature from the outside, perceived and implemented. There is now an educational Impetus, to feel an ideological claim, the more difficult the work. But she goes on.
Of course, the book price for small publishers and distributors is an essential prerequisite. It would be a killer, should the fall.