As its name suggests, the bookmark allows readers – and there are many of them – who do not read their book in one go to “mark” the page where their reading stops. A necessity fulfilled timelessly by this small piece of paper, sometimes improvised (a metro ticket, a loose sheet of paper, a receipt, etc.), sometimes chosen with care, which continues to function over the years.
“A hook that works very well”
An object that also serves as a communication tool in the publishing world. “A formidable weapon, a hook that works very well”affirms Alexandra Calmèseditor at Héloïse d’Ormesson. The bookmark holds a strategic place within the publishing house, where it helps maintain the link with readers.
“They are very useful for salon authors. We give credit to first-time novelists, still little-recognized writers who can distribute them and thus make themselves known. People stop when you give them something. » The publishing house produces less for foreign authors, de facto less present in salons to hand them to passers-by. Bookmarks are also very popular with collectors.
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Héloïse d’Ormesson goes through Sogedif, within the Editis group, to which the publishing house belongs, to order the printing of a book from a printer, and to include that of her bookmarks. They are designed from scraps of blankets. For example, 2,500 bookmarks are made from a title with a print run of 10,000 copies. “We try to have at least 1,000 per work. »
The bookmark remains an accessory whose emphasis varies depending on the publishing house. “For us and booksellers, this remains a communication medium far from being out of fashion”specifies Alexandra Calmès.
Another practice, bookmarks are not limited to paper, the audio book house Lislemoi released bookmarks in 2023 equipped with a single-use QR Code allowing direct access to the title without downloading via an application. Just buy it for 10 euros. “A good way to promote a book when it is released”presented Fabrice Fontaine et Christine Françoise has Weekly Books.
A business card
This multimedia advertising is also found at Eyrolles with the same integrated QR Code process referring to the house’s audio-book catalog, and others directly on the bookstore website, boulevard Saint-Germain (Paris, Ve).
Within the house, publishers and bookstores line up to highlight themselves thanks to the bookmark. These are arranged in a small pile near the TPE of the cash register, to make you want to help yourself for free when you inevitably go through payment. “We have entire boxes full of bookmarkstestifies a bookseller. We often put them in each book, and otherwise customers ask for them. »
The bookstore also receives them from other publishers along with their books. The accessories are highlighted on a small display at the back of the cash register and distributed at the request of customers.
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At the La Procure bookstore, rue de Mézières (Paris, VIe), a dedicated display is also installed next to the checkouts. There are bookmarks specific to La Procure as well as other houses such as Le Livre de Poche. “Customers are still very fond of the bookmark. It’s like a brand, we broadcast our own graphic identityexplain Thomas Jobbé-Duvalgeneral manager of the bookstore. Approximately 20,000 bookmarks are ordered per year from the printer Vit-Repro, and the print run has not decreased in recent years. »
Modest in printing
Despite the post-Covid paper crisis, the bookmark is not weakening in printing even if it represents a small percentage of production. “Orders do not represent more than 5% of our overall activityexpose Grégory Pônedirector of Vit-Repro printing. But it has been steadily increasing and making a comeback for several years now. » To give an idea, at Vit-Repro, 10,000 bookmarks in 5 x 16 cm format cost 590 euros excluding tax, or almost 6 cents per unit. More and more individuals also began to print them.
Orders placed at Grégory Pône are of all types and come from all backgrounds because there are no printers exclusive to bookmarks, the sector being far too niche. But some only operate in books, such as the Floch printing company, which specializes in printing novels and general literature. Located in Mayenne and in operation since 1929, it works with a large number of publishing players such as Gallimard, Hachette, Albin Michel, Média Participations, Actes Sud and even Editis and Héloïse d’Ormesson.
“The bookmark represents a very, very small part of the turnoverpresents Rosabelle Cornierproduction manager at Floch. Orders are very random depending on the small or large authors, and depending on the print runs. There may be a demand for a main print run but not for reprints. »
The bookmark, a literary accessory that has never aged, is therefore always popular and free. Good health which today makes it an excellent business card for the world of books.
