A funnel entry
It all started 42 years ago when Marc Filipson, then a teacher, worked overtime in a bookstore on rue de l’Industrie in Brussels, which he took over cheaply after a certain time. The bookstore will be expropriated a few years later and moved to Avenue des Arts (where the current store is located). From the start, Marc Filipson paid a lot of attention to hospitality. “I wanted a funnel entry, like shoe stores. This is my working method. From the first day, I offered a coffee at the start of the day and a port at closing. J I wanted to share my pleasure”, he says.
Discomfort at Filigranes: “We were not listened to enough in crucial decisions”
Another key idea: give 20% discounts on books. “I was the first to do it,” he assures. This allows him to make himself known. From 20 m2, it increases to 180 m2. “It was a good life.” A fire in 1992 forced him to settle for a few months in containers which displayed large tarpaulins with the name Filigranes seen by all motorists traveling on Avenue des Arts. He moved back into the building, which belongs to the Unibra group which is in the hands of the Relecom family. It goes from 180 to 2,700 m2. We are in the late 90s, early 2000s. Open even on Sundays, Filigranes has become the place to be. Writers come running to sign their books. “I received up to one author per day”, slips Marc Filipson.
“The beginning of the end”
Building on his success, he is hiring with all his might. From five employees in the first years, it increased to more than 50, which led to a change in the joint committee (from 201 to 301). Employees move to the 35-hour regime instead of 38 hours but while keeping the same salary. “I have committed too much”, recognizes Marc Filipson. He is almost alone on board to make management decisions. And when he delegates, he notes: “I didn’t have the chance to find the right people. Delegating well is complicated.”
guillement“We lost 8% of our turnover, that is to say 1.8 million euros. It was the beginning of the end.”
A first hard blow was dealt with the vote, in 2017, of the decree on the cultural protection of books. This decree has two parts. One: a single price for the same book, regardless of where it is sold. Two: the gradual disappearance of the tabelle, which allowed distributors in Belgium to pass on part of the costs linked to the sale of books published in France.
“We lost 8% of our turnover, that is to say 1.8 million euros. It was the beginning of the end,” says Marc Filipson. Who also does not fail to invoke the Good Move mobility plan.
The year 2020 is marked by the health crisis. Marc Filipson says “to have fought” so that books are considered public utility goods and bookstores therefore remain open. This won battle did not, however, prevent a drop in attendance due to the teleworking of customers, notably from the European Commission. The situation is all the more complicated as purchasing power is being eroded by rising energy costs following the start of the war in Ukraine. Which also pushed up prices and, therefore, wages due to automatic indexation.
Deleterious context
And then there was the fatal blow, namely the harassment complaints against Marc Filipson whose controversial nature created great discomfort. “This bashing is partly responsible for what I’m experiencing. The staff, in a way, shot themselves in the foot,” comments the person concerned. An opinion that the current CEO, Véronique Croisé, does not share. The latter emphasizing that employees are in no way responsible for the PRJ.
It is in this deleterious context and at the request of staff who wanted a change in management that Véronique Croisé, a seasoned business leader and notably owner of the Nias paper mills, was appointed CEO in 2022. “The core business was working well, but the company had grown without organization. There was no financial balance. Marc created too many jobs. We can obviously criticize him, but he wanted to do well”, she explains to us. While adding that, when she arrived, she said to herself “that it was a disaster”. The CEO admits “to be in pain” when she hears that there is no social consultation, alluding to a recent press release from the CNE-CSC union delegates, which also highlighted the “poor management of our bookstore”.
Filigranes bookstores have four months to find a buyer and avoid bankruptcy. “We are hopeful that we will find a solution.”
Since Véronique Croisé has been here, a new collective agreement has been signed. The stock of books has been revised downwards. This made it possible to free up one million euros. “It was the selling booksellers who estimated for themselves how many books were for sale. They became managers. We work together,” she insists. In a few years, the company went from 70 full-time equivalents (FTEs) to 40 FTEs currently and from 120 to 30 student contracts for a turnover of 12 million euros (for the three stores, two to Brussels and one in Knokke).
This reorganization work, however, did not save the company. “We cannot pay the debts of the past”explains the CEO. Not having succeeded in this challenge obviously disappointed her. “It’s a failure, I arrived a little late. I couldn’t have done more,” she tells us with emotion.
But like Marc Filipson, she is convinced that this PRJ will give new life to the brand. “I think with 1.5 to 2 million, investors can create a new Watermarks.“And this new life will take place in a place other than Avenue des Arts. But perhaps again with Marc Filipson if the buyers decide to keep him as an independent consultant. He who says he is convinced that “the readers are still there. But the welcome must be there too. Welcome is so important
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