How buoyant was business at the Cape Town Book Fair?

Suhani Singh speaks to visitors to find out how they coped in a new book publishing territory.

08 Oct 2010 | By Suhani Singh

Rinku Dhar, manager, Nutech Print Services

"The CTBF this year was not great as expected. The feedback we got from the other exhibitors and visitors was not great either. The footfall at the fair was lower than last year. One should always go with prefixed appointments and then look for generating more contacts within the fair itself. A rigorous follow up is required to convert prospects into customers. The focus this year was observed to be more on renowned publishers wanting to print offshore with an edge on pricing. The South African market is actually yet an unexplored market and has an enormous potential. Indian printers realised the potential it has has and have started to explore the market."

Abhishek Goel, director, Maple Press

"This was my first time at the CTBF, and I was overwhelmed by the response we got. It is a budding market for Indian printers and publishers as the country is growing rapidly. For any third world country India plays key role. Our strong educational background serves as a blessing as the demand and the focus is mostly on educational books segment. Indians have to make them believe and prove they are capable of producing superior quality work which in turn would bring them success. South Africans have their own curriculum and they do not want to promote European publisher which provides Indian publishers with a good chance to break in."

Nilesh Dhankani, vice president, Repro India (Africa)

"This was our fourth year at the CTBF. The first was the best so far. After that the number of exhibitors went down due to recession in last two years. This year it got back to its first year form. The fair is overall more advantageous for the publishers as they have bigger printing presses there compared to India. But the fact remains that the cost offered by the Indian printers are 20% lesser than the price prevalent there, provided they assure supreme quality. It would be a good idea for the Indian participants to promote India as a hub rather than just talk about their individual company and leave it for market there to decide."

Pranav Gupta, head of business development, Prints India

"The CTBF was not up to our expectations because more than a book fair, we felt as if we were attending a printing fair. We have participated in the CTBF fair before and if a comparison has to be made, I’d say that there was a decline of business prospects witnessed this year. There was a lack of trade visitors. Furthermore in my view Durban, Johannesburg would have served as a better venue for the fair. India is the world’s second largest market for English books and the African market is looking for Indian published books. If venue remains the same we may not participate next year."