«[...] compared to small and medium-sized publishers the larger firms do have many advantages (financial and human resources, infrastructure etc.). But the fact remains, it’s always possible to publish ‘differently’. I believe the main distinction between the big companies and the independent publishers is not just a question of size or the sources of their capital; they also have a radically different understanding of what a book actually is. We are not interested in high-circulation books that disappear three months later, nor in books that have been tested with focus groups – and certainly not the kind that land in the discount bins because of poor sales figures. We build up strong catalogues that allow us to engage with and have some effect in a specific society – while not forgetting that a small publishing house is still a business, and that it has to look after its finances and pursue its business plan. At the same time, we’re also well aware that you can’t expect the same kind of return on books as you’d get from domestic appliances, because they’re items that are very different in nature.»
«[...] we are small to medium-sized companies. For this reason, it’s important for us to eschew the kind of romanticism, naivety and yearning for paternalism that characterise the approaches taken to some projects. Instead, the management of a small business has to be conducted very professionally. That means establishing clearly what kind of publisher you want to be, and what has to be done to achieve that. It’s important not only to restrict yourself to publishing a specific genre, but also to know, for instance, where and how you intend to sell these books, and what direct and indirect costs this will incur. So you see, the same issues are relevant to the larger and the smaller publishing houses alike. The difference lies not just in the financial capacity, but also in the answers they ultimately find to the points I’ve raised here.»
«No time for naivety and romanticism – A talk with Leonora Djament», en el blog de la Frankfurter Buchmesse 2010.
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