are bookshops essential retail
In an open letter, reproduced in full below, BA m.d. Campbell told The Bookseller: “If I'd had three days I could have got many, many more signatures. Echoing the words of Philip Pullman, Halls added: "Bookshops …
, 300px wide Non-essential retail, indoor gyms and leisure facilities must close. Non-essential retail will close, but according to new regulations these firms will be allowed to stay open: Supermarkets, grocery stores and corner shops Alcohol shops, including breweries THE GOVERNMENT HAS announced that the country is moving to Level 5 restrictions as of Wednesday night – so what retailers and services will be allowed to continue? Meanwhile other retailers, deemed essential under current regulations, are arguably exploiting the situation, putting specialist retailers at a massive disadvantage. We are eager to help achieve that, but we also know that our bookshops are lanterns of civilisation and, for many, beacons of hope. Support us now, Your contributions will help us continue The decline of independent bookshops was arrested in 2017, with the total number actually growing, if only by one. The Explainer is a weekly podcast from TheJournal.ie that takes a deeper look at one big news story you need to know about. Bookshops play a unique part in the culture of our country and books have a crucial role to play in the health and well-being of our population. Two decades on from a landmark case in Britain, discrimination is still an everyday experience for Travellers, writes legal affairs journalist CJ McKinney. Column: 'Pontins only achieved such rapid notoriety because it targeted common Irish surnames'. Non-essential retail units are being forced to close under new lockdown rules imposed across all of England; Clothes shops, bookstores and florists … All pubs will have to operate take-away and delivery services, while ‘wet pubs’ in Dublin will have to remain closed entirely. Outlets selling safety supplies (including work-wear apparel, footwear and personal protective equipment), whether on a retail or wholesale basis. Wire service provided by Associated Press. In March, garden centres were not on the original essential businesses list and were added at a later date. Retailers with mixed retail offering which have discrete spaces for essential and non-essential retail should make arrangements for the separation of relevant areas. Outlets providing hearing test services or selling hearing aids and appliances, on an emergency basis only. According to the restrictions, non-essential shops, such as retail, vehicle showrooms, tobacco and vape shops, tailors and electronic goods stores can stay open only if … The list of essential retail and services is longer than at the peak of the last shutdown, with hardware shops, bicycle repair shops and opticians joining the likes of supermarkets, newsagents and pharmacies this time around. While non-essential retailers are closed for in-store customers, they are permitted to remain open for click and collect services, and for deliveries. As the UK continues to battle the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, non-essential retail has had to shut its doors once again. According to the i newspaper, an “acceptable” level of the R rate could see non-essential retailers, which includes bookshops, start to reopen by the … BA calls for bookshops to be classified essential retailers At the moment, every one of Waterstones’s UK shops is closed, as is its location in the Netherlands; the company’s shop in Belgium (where bookshops have been deemed essential… Our members are entirely behind the government’s push to suppress infection rates and enforce social distancing and safe behaviour, but they and their customers believe that retail is already a safe, managed environment. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy, Professor Sam McConkey: Ten steps we should take to rid Ireland of Covid for good. Outlets selling office products and services for businesses or for relevant people working from home, whether on a retail or wholesale basis, also on an emergency basis only. Bookstores in France want to be an essential service in lockdown. Irish sport images provided by Inpho Photography unless otherwise stated. Bookshops should be classed as essential ... - Retail Gazette The tally now stands at 868, which is over one thousand fewer than it was back in 1995. From 16 January 2021, click and collect services for all essential retailers and for those listed retailers permitted to provide a permitted collection service will continue to be available. Bookshops have been designated as essential in other countries, and the ‘essential' categorisation will acknowledge the crucial role that bookshops play in our culture, economy and wider society." Noteworthy | #Open journalism Any other retail outlet that operates an online or other remote system of ordering goods for purposes of collection at the retail outlet. No news is bad news Supermarkets can sell “non-essential” homeware if it is stocked on its aisles but if the items are kept on a separate floor, it must close the area. on an emergency basis only. We urge the government, therefore, to categorise bookshops as essential retailers. Just like the previous two coronavirus lockdowns, a handful of … Outlets selling health, medical or orthopaedic goods in a specialised outlet, whether on a retail or wholesale basis. The American Booksellers' Association shares thoughts on the importance of books during the pandemic. Your contributions will help us continue to deliver the stories that are important to you. Massive investment has gone into making bookshops Covid-compliant and responsible retailers have ensured that staff and consumer safety is at the top of their priority list. ALL non-essential shops have been ordered to close during England’s third national lockdown. For more information on cookies please refer to our cookies policy. Our bookshops in England are currently closed due to coronavirus restrictions and our Click & Collect and Deliver to Shop services are unavailable from these locations. Adverts.ie | Your contributions will help us continue Users are reminded that they are fully responsible for their own created content and their own posts, comments and submissions and fully and effectively warrant and indemnify Journal Media in relation to such content and their ability to make such content, posts, comments and submissions available. The authors state: “Please may we urge you to declare books essential items during lockdowns, and to allow bookshops and libraries to remain open, if they so wish, in Tier One and Two areas at the least. Its letter makes a comparison with garden centres being belatedly classified as essential during the first lockdown due to them being deemed beneficial to the nation’s health, while avoiding catastrophic losses should the sector have missed out on spring trading. to deliver the stories that are important to you Their livelihoods and those of their staff are already in jeopardy from the first lockdown, and their chances of survival into 2021 would be much improved by having a solid Christmas sales period. Hotels, guesthouses and B&Bs may remain open, but only to support the provision of essential services, while bars, cafes, restaurants and wet pubs may provide take-away and delivery services. This is potentially ruinous commercially and is also morally problematic. Support The Journal Book Stores in the US industry outlook (2021-2026) poll Average industry growth 2021-2026: x.x lock Purchase this report or a membership to unlock the average company profit margin for this industry. “We also should not, as a country, allow bookshops to go out of business; we have some of the world’s best.”. The42 | Meryl Halls outlines the many ways in which bookshops provide an essential contribution to society, from the links between reading and improved mental wellbeing, to providing educational resources to children and adults, to contributing to local economies. Fuel service stations and heating fuel providers. The Booksellers Association (BA) has written to key government ministers and Lords calling for bookshops be classed as essential retailers, allowing them to reopen during lockdown in England. However, since the lockdown began, it has become increasingly obvious that current guidance has created huge inconsistencies within the retail sector. “I'm not saying that all bookshops should be open, it's up to the bookseller if they feel there's a risk to their staff. Government guidelines say: “A business selling a significant amount of essential retail may also continue to sell goods typically sold at non-essential retail. Bookshops are resilient and creative, and this is not a case of special pleading; this is a request for an acknowledgement that books matter, and that therefore bookshops matter and should be allowed to stay open. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. https://www.thejournal.ie/shops-and-services-restrictions-5237766-Oct2020 Any decision to move an area into level 4 will only be made if absolutely necessary as a short, sharp intervention to address very high transmission rates. The full list of essential retail outlets includes: The government has also said that although those who travel more than 5km from their home will be penalised, there will be exemptions to this. The letter says: "This is potentially ruinous commercially and is also morally problematic. Outlets selling essential items for the health and welfare of animals, laundries and dry-cleaners, banks, post offices and credit unions will also be allowed to remain open. News images provided by Press Association and Photocall Ireland unless otherwise stated. We urge you to consider classifying them as essential retailers. Professor Sam McConkey outlines ways to make Ireland a world leader in the Zero Covid approach to this pandemic. All non-essential retail will be permitted to reopen from Apr 12, Boris Johnson has announced. Independent bookshops in the U. K. have backed the accelerated launch of a new online retailer that plans to go toe-to-toe with Amazon, carrying a … Organised by Everyman's Library publisher David Campbell, that letter, dated 4th November, was signed by a host of celebrated authors and sent to Prime Minister Boris Johnson alongside Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden. Sites: And we know that there is no demonstrable evidence for retail locations being the locus of infections. Hardware outlets, builders’ merchants and outlets that provide hardware products necessary for home and business maintenance or construction and development, sanitation and farm equipment, or supplies and tools essential for farming or agriculture purposes. Businesses considered non-essential … Shops in Wales Please note that TheJournal.ie uses cookies to improve your experience and to provide services and advertising. People must work from home if they can but may travel if it is not possible. The MEP says China’s holding of Richard O’Halloran against his will is an outrageous breach of human rights. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, PH: (01) 6489130, Lo-Call 1890 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie. Bookshop is a new online bookstore helping independent retailers stay afloat during the coronavirus pandemic and fight back against Amazon. For this lockdown, as we go into dark winter nights, products and activities such as books and reading are a vital a way of keeping the nation’s spirits up whilst they’re locked in their homes. Shopping centres are allowed to stay open if they have retail units which offer essential services, such as food or medicine, or shops on this list. However, hairdressers and barbers will not remain open, nor will the likes of bookshops or clothes shops. Barry Andrews: Richard O'Halloran and China's handling of such cases should not be ignored. Our members are prevented from opening, yet see garden centres and food shops selling books, when bookshops are quite clearly the best places to sell books to consumers at this crucial time of year. Outlets providing electrical, information and communications technology and telephone sales, repair and maintenance services for places of residence and businesses, on an emergency basis only. All other retailers can open for a click-and-collect service, where this can be appropriately managed within public health guidelines. Managing Director, Booksellers Association. Pharmacies, chemists and retailers or wholesalers providing pharmaceuticals or pharmaceutical or dispensing services, whether on a retail or wholesale basis. Specialist bookshops, such as Waterstones, Foyles, Blackwells, and more than 900 independents have had to close their doors at the very moment when they were poised to start making up lost ground from the first lockdown and three months of lost sales. Daft.ie, Level 5: These are the essential retail outlets and services allowed open under the new restrictions Comments, Create an email alert based on the current article, Personalise your news feed by choosing your favourite topics of interest. Journal Media does not control and is not responsible for the content of external websites. Choose 3 or more topics that you want to see. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said stay-at-home rules should be lifted April 5, with retail starting to open up; this would begin with an extension of the definition of essential retail and the removal of restrictions on click and collect. When coronavirus restrictions finally lift to allow non-essential trading, please consult our Shop Finder to confirm opening hours. Outlets selling food or beverages on a takeaway basis, or newspapers, whether on a retail or wholesale basis and whether in a non-specialised or specialised outlet. Outlets selling products necessary for the essential upkeep and functioning of places of residence and businesses, whether on a retail or wholesale basis. Journal Media does not control and is not responsible for user created content, posts, comments, submissions or preferences. Every single one of those authors answered within sometimes 30 seconds or one minute. However, customers will be required to visit alone or with household groups as these premises reopen.
, 400px wide “Book sales and library borrowings have, as has been reported in the press, increased significantly this year during the pandemic, despite bookshops being closed in the last lockdown – proof of their importance to the mental health and happiness of the nation. I understand that it must be very difficult to pull the legislation and guidance together at such short notice, and moreover, we understand that the public health agenda is clearly the most important in order to get coronavirus under control. Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, The latest Irish and international sports news for readers and members, A platform helping fund the type of in-depth journalism that the public wants to see, This is YOUR comments community. We urge the government to consider classifying them as essential retailers.”. Thank you for your consideration and I look forward to hearing from you. TheJournal.ie | ", Halls said: “On behalf of our members, we urge the government to categorise bookshops as essential retailers. Boards.ie | To embed this post, copy the code below on your site, 600px wide The full list of signatories features Pat Barker, William Boyd, Jung Chang and Jon Halliday, William Dalrymple, Sebastian Faulks, Tom Holland, Barry Humphries, Howard Jacobson, Simon Jenkins, Neil MacGregor, Ben Macintyre, Margaret MacMillan, Alexander McCall Smith, Ben Okri, Philip Pullman, Simon Schama and Tom Stoppard. The publisher said he put the letter together quickly and could have got even more authors involved but wanted to strike before lockdown started. not on the list of essential businesses above - the legal position is that they will need to close in Level 4. “We all know Amazon had a staggering year and we're grateful to them for selling quite so many books, but we don't want it to be to the detriment of booksellers.”. Garden centres made the case that spring was their busiest trading period, that if they were unable to trade at that time of year their businesses would not survive, and that gardening would be beneficial to the nation’s mental health while at home. Bookshops in Scotland are also expected to reopen in April, the Bookseller reported. Boris Johnson enforced UK lockdown measures and the closure of non-essential shops. There are more hen harriers in the UK than independent bookshops! to deliver the stories that are important to you. The letter also highlights the inconsistencies within the current definitions of essential retail, underlining the commercial disadvantage faced by bookshops, with essential retailers that sell books being allowed to remain open, while booksellers themselves are forced to shut up shop. Optician and optometrist outlets. Essential shops include Post Offices, banks, and home & hardware stores. You can find local bookshops at Independent Bookshop Week. Essential retail will be able to remain open in Level 4. The BA argues the Christmas trading period is the most important time of year and can make or break the sustainability of a local bookshop. Garden centres. Outlets selling food or beverages whether on a retail or wholesale basis and whether in a non-specialised or specialised outlet if they sell food or beverages on a takeaway basis or for consumption off the premises, if staff canteens operating for the exclusive use of persons working in, or at, a particular premises, or hotels or similar accommodation services insofar as they sell food or beverages for consumption on the premises by residents of the service. The lockdown inequities on the high street are confusing for consumers, and clearly unjust in competitive terms. This has been undertaken in countries, and the ‘essential’ categorisation will acknowledge the crucial role that bookshops play in our culture, economy and wider society. As was the case in the last lockdown, essential retailers and services will be the only ones permitted to open under Level 5. Outlets selling essential items for the health and welfare of animals (including animal feed and veterinary medicinal products, pet food, animal bedding and animal supplies), whether on a retail or wholesale basis. Bookshops have been designated as essential in other countries, and the ‘essential’ categorisation will acknowledge the crucial role that bookshops play in our culture, economy and wider society.”, Echoing the words of Philip Pullman, she added: “Bookshops are lanterns of civilisation and, for many, beacons of hope. ©2021 The Bookseller, The Stage Media Company Ltd. BA calls for trade support as bookshops gear up for 15th June reopening, BA calls for clarity on bookshops as Johnson announces June re-openings, Scottish bookshops keep click and collect option as Sturgeon brands books 'essential', Wales and Ireland close non-essential shops in new lockdowns, Non-essential retail to close in 11 areas of Scotland, Moon Lane TV: World Book Day Exclusive with Joseph Coelho and Fiona Lumbers, A Drink with the Idler | Ruby Wax and Tom Hodgkinson, Bossing it with Fab and Emma: An International Women’s Day Event. • They provide mental health benefits to their communities and customers; reading has proven mental health benefits and bookshops provide safe spaces for those in need of help and advice, • They provide reading and educational resources to children and their families – especially important at a time when education is inevitably affected and the need for books in the home greater than ever, • They provide access to information, entertainment, distraction, the thoughts of others, the companionship of words, the comfort of escape that comes from immersion in a creative art form, • They are very often right at the heart of their high street communities; taking leadership roles within their local business organisations, as well as engaging with local writers, schools, reading groups, and libraries, • They deliver financial benefit into their communities, as well as enhancing their local cultural and social ecosystems – they pay taxes, and keep money in the local economy. But particularly the small independents, which did some fantastic work in the last lockdown by posting stuff out, I feel the government and the Department for Culture, Media & Sport should make it as easy as possible for them. But those disadvantages have become even greater as bookstores are deemed non-essential businesses during the coronavirus outbreak and are forced to shut down. Outlets providing for the repair and maintenance of mechanically propelled vehicles or bicycles and any related facilities (including tyre sales and repairs). The Booksellers Association supported the second lockdown when it was announced as a means to achieve widespread public compliance and drive down infection rates, and accepted that bookshops would need to close. Meanwhile, services relating to farming, farm labour, crop and animal production, fishing for commercial purposes, animal welfare, forestry, veterinary are permitted. Those who work in essential shops or who provide essential services will not be penalised, while individuals will be allowed travel more than 5km to go shopping. The appeal echoes calls from Waterstones boss James Daunt for bookshops to be classified as essential retail, and also comes after writers including Antony Beevor, Ali Smith, Edward St Aubyn and Salman Rushdie wrote to the Prime Minister last week asking for books to be considered essential items. Retail Excellence Ireland had warned the government that “all retail should be classed as ‘essential’ to avoid a potential 60,000 job losses, particularly in the run-up to Christmas. And services for motorists such as driving tests and the NCT will continue during the six-week period. The letter also points out essential retailers, some of which also sell books, are allowed to remain open and are therefore "arguably exploiting the situation" while booksshops are shut. For retailers which have been defined as non-essential – i.e.
, Access to the comments facility has been disabled for this user, Notify me of followup comments via e-mail, TheJournal.ie supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and the Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice. Telephone and on-line orders for home delivery can continue for all retail businesses. It states: "Their livelihoods and those of their staff are already in jeopardy from the first lockdown, and their chances of survival into 2021 would be much improved by having a solid Christmas sales period.". Shop Closures Shops in England . Markets that, wholly or principally, offer food for sale.