The frustration of Romanian citizens in the censorship age, when one could not find foreign books anywhere else but in a library, has been mostly compensated over the past decade, when foreign books covering a variety of fields have entered the market, reaching even bookstores in many neighbourhoods.
One thing should be addressed though, namely the extent to which supply meets demand and how profitable it is to import foreign books nowadays in Romania.
At present, opening a bookstore specialising only on foreign books would be practically impossible, as it could not make it financially, says bookstore keeper Adrian Dinu, from the Kretzulescu Bookstore in Bucharest. It might be successful though, if regarded as a long-term investment, with an additional funding source to help it along the way, Dinu explains.
The purchasing power of clients would not be the main cause for failure, since most foreign books are sold at prices comparable to the ones for Romanian books, sometimes even cheaper, but because few readers know about the offer, straight from the source.
“Those coming to inquire about the latest foreign book releases are those who travel abroad a lot, keep updated with the latest publications and know exactly what kind of books they would like to find here,” Adrian Dinu says.
Therefore, the Romanian foreign book readers are generally looking for non-fiction, not translated into Romanian yet and which may be long-term investments – utility books (encyclopaedias, dictionaries, courses, specialised books) and art albums.
According to Dinu, the business is good, so that the weight of foreign books in the turnover is “worth considering.” The items in the highest demand are art albums, computer and legal books.
As for fiction, there are either consumer best sellers for those interested in reading the original version or simply for those who want to improve their knowledge of (mainly) modern English, or classical works.
The classics supply is higher than the contemporary fiction and children’s books supply, as the latter are much more expensive, and therefore more seldom imported. “Unfortunately, the supply of modern foreign literature is much below demand.
The classics editions are not the readers’ special favourite, because most of the classics are available in Romanian versions, as well,” says Mihaela Baiesu, bookstore keeper at Mihai Eminescu Bookstore.
This store is packed with books from Britain-based Wordsworth Editions, from Bronte Sisters’ novels to Thomas Hardy, which are sold at the same price as the deluxe editions published by Rao Publishing House.
Ovidiu Morar, associate manager of the NOI Companies Group, one of the leading foreign book importers in Romania, explains the relation between what is imported and what is printed in the country.
“Romanian editors consult our imported books offer for inspiration on their translation schedule or for releasing books in Romanian. More than 500 of the books we offered were translated into Romanian.”