Grub Street Printing Newsletter #8 Nov./Dec. 2008

On Demand Books

The Espresso 2 book making machine has just been introduced by On Demand Books. The stand alone machine can produce a perfect bound book in 5 – 10 minutes at a cost of around $10.

The University of Michigan Library purchased an Espresso 1.5 in September of this year (about $100,000) and is already approaching 2 million available titles for production.

Is browsing at Borders about to go the way of the 5^th Avenue Easter Parade?

Border’s Blues

With private equity firms hoarding whatever funds they have, Borders Group announced it has abandoned its search for a suitor and will continue to attempt to grow its business alone.

Border’s stock has fallen from $12 to $.69 per share this year. The NYSE requires a minimum share price of $1.00 to be listed.

Freight 101

It took years for me to understand LTL (Less Than Truckload) freight rates, classes and tariffs. Here’s a simple explanation of the LTL pricing structure (and it offers the name of a carrier currently offering 70% discounts) http://www.logisticsmgmt.com/article/CA6601818.html. A free subscription to Logistics Management is also available at this site.

Package Delivery Rates Going UP(S)

Although gasoline prices have fallen to their lowest level in 4 years, UPS has announced a 5.9% price increase effective January 5 on all ground and LTL services. Air services will increase 4.9%

Also, the US Post Office announced a $2.8 billion loss for the fiscal year ending September 30. Pundits say to brace for a significant increase.

Chasing 1%

Random House just announced it will increase the number of its titles available as e-books to 15,000.

While quick to point out that e-book sales more than doubled this year, Random House acknowledges that e-books have captured less than 1% of total book sales.

With Regret

Robert Cooper, former Executive Secretary of the American Federation of Astrologers, passed away August 8, 2008. He had retired last winter. Bob was a polarizing figure in the astrological community. I worked with Bob and the AFA on perhaps 100 titles over the years.

Happy 1st Birthday to Us

In reviewing year #1 we found that when Grub Street Printing gets multiple estimates for you, the average savings between the two best quotes is $506. That’s a 14% savings for our publishers!

Thanks to all of the publishers who gave us a try (and saved some money).

What are you waiting for?