While Harper Collins has, for now, abandoned its no-returns experiment ("… it was a very complicated program to establish, and we learned a lot," comments company spokesperson Eric Crum), other publishers continue to tinker with various no- or limited-return arrangements.
No Risk, No Returns
"I do think that the tolerance for returns in the book business favors small presses such as mine, at least those who do want to maximize trade sales," says Steve Carlson, publisher, Upper Access Inc. "We don't have big, blockbuster titles. … Therefore, our new titles are never a sure bet for a book-seller. A bookstore buyer is a lot more likely to take a chance on one of my titles if he or she knows that unsold copies can be returned."
Cover Story: Rethinking a World With No Returns
While Harper Collins has, for now, abandoned its no-returns experiment ("… it was a very complicated program to establish, and we learned a lot," comments company spokesperson Eric Crum), other publishers continue to tinker with various no- or limited-return arrangements.
No Risk, No Returns
"I do think that the tolerance for returns in the book business favors small presses such as mine, at least those who do want to maximize trade sales," says Steve Carlson, publisher, Upper Access Inc. "We don't have big, blockbuster titles. … Therefore, our new titles are never a sure bet for a book-seller. A bookstore buyer is a lot more likely to take a chance on one of my titles if he or she knows that unsold copies can be returned."