TEHRAN -- Sales of children’s books plunged 20% this year at the Tehran International Book Fair (TIBF), as visitors had less access to children’s pavilions.

Publishers racked up about 100b rials (about $10m) in sales this year, down from 120b rials (about $12m) last year.
The 23rd Tehran International Book Fair ran from May 5 to 15 at the Imam Khomeini Mosalla.
Last year’s children’s pavilions were located at the entrance door of the fair where children and their parents could easily gain access to the books, executive manager of the children’s book publications Mohammad-Taqi Haqbian told the Persian service of Mehr.
Over the past three years, pavilions of children’s books, academic books and the subsidized section were located in the three-story structure of the fair where a great number of consumers visited, leading to higher sales in those years.
“Another possible reason for the lackluster sales was inadequate dissemination of information across the courtyard of the Mosalla, and we at the Cultural Association of Children’s books were forced to hang large banners on highways and at metro stations,” he added.
He also suggested that if children’s pavilions were to be assigned fixed locations that would not change from year to year, visitors would no doubt find them, leading to increased sales in the coming editions of the fair.
However, secretary of the Cultural Association spoke of other possible reasons for the decline and said, “Despite the improper location of children’s pavilions, another factor is that books and reading is not a major cultural need in a society rooted in our historical and cultural heritage.
“There is a large distance between motto and action. Unfortunately, in our country, a materialistic attitude predominates,” Shahram Eqbalzadeh lamented.
“The idea of spending a lot of money on books appeals only to a small segment of the market. Most mainstream consumers are wealthy, while the remainder earn just enough to meet their basic needs, so it is quite understandable that they retain most of their income to provide for their daily needs, which leaves little or nothing for books in general and children’s books in particular,” he explained.
“These are the types of families who purchase books for their children, but as long as book-reading is not institutionalized among parents, most would not spend a lot on books for children and young adults,” he remarked.
Photo: A child along with his mother visits the 23rd Tehran International Book Fair, which was held from May 5 to 15, 2010. (Mehr/Abolfazl Salmanzadeh)