Melville House Books

“This . . . is a plaintive cri de coeur, asking why, still, publishers allow booksellers to return books for full credit—or is it that booksellers require publishers to accept the return of books for full credit? Does anyone even know? If the origins of the returns policy are lost in the mists of time, why does the policy itself persist into the 21st century?” So asks publisher Doug Seibold is the president of Agate, at the beginning of an essay for The Book Standard. Seibold runs through the pros—and yes, there are some—and the cons, and notes that “the costs involved in maintaining returns create, in effect, the bubble that artificially inflates in turn almost every other aspect of publishing.” He also notes that “popping it would mean a sharp shock of deflation that would rock all of us, publishers, retailers, and everyone else in the business.” Still, he says, “doing so would ultimately force everyone involved in publishing to do their jobs better. The overall result? Less waste, more profit—and a more level playing field for indie publishers and booksellers to compete with their corporate brethren.”

Dennis Johnson is the founder of MobyLives, and the co-founder and co-publisher of Melville House.