Europe features a rich variety of national and international book fairs. Traditionally, the former are the most important appointment for books and reading promotion: open to the grand public, they represent an essential opportunity for publishers to engage directly with readers. The latter, mainly B2B oriented, are also the main occasions for book professional to foster business opportunities, meet, share experiences and partnering for co-edition, or other initiatives.
Digital technologies are changing this landscape, including the traditional distinction between the national and international exhibitions: book-fairs are called to change, transforming their format, through focusing on new ways to increase the editorial works mobility, capacity building and helping book professionals to seize the opportunities that digital technologies offer to establish new relations with readers.
The idea behind Aldus – the European Book Fairs’ network – is simple: collaboration, mutual knowledge and benchmarking at pan-European level are essential for book fairs to innovate their models and find new opportunities to become more and more competitive in a global cultural market.
Starting points are the presence in the network of the two leading International book fairs in the world (Frankfurt and Bologna Children’s), and a rich variety of national book fairs open to the public (Rome, Vilnius, Riga, Lisbon and Bucharest). Others started collaborating (Antwerp, London Sofia, Thessaloniki and Vienna) thus expanding the network potential.
European Book Fairs. Facts and Figures, published in the framework of Aldus and jointly developed with the contribution of national and international Book Fairs of the network, provides an overview of the rich variety of the European landscape, highlighting key aspects that make every exhibition unique. It is intended as a benchmarking tool for book professionals to discover the evolving landscape of European book fairs through key facts and figures and to boost the dialogue within the Aldus network on how book fairs can further collaborate, either by sharing know how or through joint initiatives, to increase their capacities in the area of internationalization, reading promotion and audience engagement.
European Book Fairs. Facts and Figures 2016 is available for download HERE.
