Barbara Ellington, Acting Lifestyle Editor
Publisher Ian Randle says marketing and the level of Government bureaucracy pose major challenges to his operation. - IAN ALLEN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Money has never been the thing that drives me. I have never feared poverty.
HE IS a 35-year veteran of the publishing industry, having entered at age 21 straight out of university. His first job was with Ginn & Company, primary schoolbook publishers, and he moved through various posts at other publishing houses till 1975 when he was asked to head Heinemann.
Today his company, Ian Randle Publishers (IRP), has over 300 books in print and Mr. Randle has passed the mantle over to his daughter Christine. He now prefers to remain behind the scenes and assist with marketing the books, as well as passing on the wisdom of his years.
Faced with a situation where no matter how interesting the subject, readership for most books published in Jamaica on Jamaican personalities and topics, is minimal, Mr. Randle is undaunted. He spoke with The Gleaner about the remarkable journey and the future of publishing in Jamaica.
Barbara Ellington: How did you start IRP?
Ian Randle: In 1990 I never had any visions or ambitions about starting my own business but I constantly needed to reinvent myself, and after 15 years with Heinemann I was getting restless. On the spur of the moment I decided to take the bold move to leave and set up my own business. Publishing was not well established; I had no backing and I chose the area of scholarly and academic publishing that no one had gone into before. People said there was no market for those kinds of books in Jamaica and the Caribbean.
We created the market for writers and buyers. We helped create opportunities for academics to express themselves and be able to gain international recognition. Publishing is highly capital-intensive and long-term, but two of the greatest assets you can have when starting a business are contacts and a good reputation. I had developed a range of contacts regionally and internationally and was able to call on them.
BE: How were you financed?
IR: I began with an overdraft. Fifteen years later I am still borrowing and every penny goes back into new books. But I get joy out of creating each new book and I am, determined to be the best, rather than make money be the focus.
BE: How many books do you publish each year and how many have you published since the start of IRP?
IR: We are a medium-size publishing house and are now up to producing 50 books a year with a range of subjects and titles. We are the leading publishers of Caribbean books anywhere in the world.
BE: What has been your most difficult challenge?
IR: Marketing. People do not realise that developing and creating the book is the easiest part and our books are a hard sell, plus Jamaicans are not a reading public. But much has changed and we are now seen as a major player. We are getting our shelf space.
The other major challenge for me in business over the years is the Government bureaucracy. There are too many roadblocks and too much lip service is paid by our leaders at all levels. Government policies are stuck in the 19th century and the attitude towards the movement of intellectual property is wrong. Manuscripts are held at customs for long periods without rhyme or reason.
Sometimes page proofs come in from as far as Hong Kong to be reuturned in a specific time; delays at customs mean losing your schedule.
BE: Where do you print your books?
IR: Most of our books are printed in the United States and some are printed in the Far East, the latter for books with lots of colour and where the print runs are large. Their facilities are more cost-effective. Many American printers now have plants in China because they cannot compete from America. The United States is now one of our major markets so we distribute there too.
BE: If an author brings you a manuscript in January, how long does it take to get to a book stage, having gone through all the procedures?
IR: It ranges: Three to five years ago we gave nine months, but our standard has come down to six months. In reality, we are producing books in a much shorter turnaround time, in some cases, three months. Advances in technology account for this. We are now using digital technology more than offset printing - once you send an electronic file to a digital printer, you can get a book in two weeks for a printed bound copy. The bulk of the work is at the editorial, design, proofing and indexing stage. We are able to turn around fast because we have a cadre of editors and proofreaders whom we can rely on and employ all the time.
More importantly, we beefed up our editorial staff in-house and are now more in control of everything. But the trend in the industry is to outsource. We prefer to control the processes and set our own schedules, so we sometimes produce a book in three months.
BE: What is IRP worth?
IR: I don't know, that is not my forte. There has never been a need to think about it. Also, traditionally in this business, it's difficult to value a business whose assets are intellectual property. It is hard to get bankers. The value lies in the copyright to books we hold now; the unquestioned reputation of IRP internationally.
BE: How many books will IRP publish next year?
IR: As of now, our publishing list is fully committed up to the first half of next year. We have up to 30 books to that time; books always get squeezed in and are produced quickly, particularly on topical issues or for a big conference. We have a planned list and others get slotted in and it's those that are produced in the shortest time.
When we sign contracts, we ask for all the information to build a marketing campaign and that starts when we contract them. Short-circuiting that process does not give us that leeway. We announce a book six months in advance and orders start coming in immediately.
When we ask for nine months, the time is used to build up marketing steam because when the book comes out, it's too late to start marketing.
BE: Besides bureaucracy, what other obstacles do you face in business?
IR: We face a hard time from banks. We get lip service from Government and banks; it is
easier to get a loan to buy a car than one to produce a book. The true assets of a publishing company are the intellectual property which are intangible assets and publishers throughout the Caribbean have found it difficult to get bank financing. We don't own the kind of collateral that banks want to hold on to.
On the other hand, whereas machinery and other forms of collateral may lose value, that is not the case for intellectual property. None of the banks have attempted to educate themselves as to how to assess the value of intellectual property so that they can earn money through financing it.
There is the case of a popular cookbook published in 1995. We still sell up to 10,000 copies every year for the past 10 years. A bank could earn significantly from that. The author earns royalty in perpetuity as long as it remains in print and that is why authors should always sign a royalty-based contract because over time they reap the rewards.
BE: When you take a manuscript from someone, are you paid to publish it?
IR: No, but if they come with money, we don't turn it back, but it is never a condition. We invest 100 per cent, in return for which the author is paid royalty. If the book fails to sell, we are the losers. The author does not have to wait till we cover costs to start earning royalties. The way contracts are set up, the author earns even before we make back our money.
BE: What's been the most surprising thing for you in this business?
IR: How quickly it has grown, both in terms of the books produced and the high regard in which our publishing is held across the world. It constantly surprises me when I visit faraway places and people know about the books and company and think highly of us. It is almost as if they are surprised that this high quality production can come from such a small place.
Also, when they realise that it is owned by a black man, they don't expect me to be black or so young, and because the name is so well known we are equated with large companies that have existed for over a hundred years.
Today the company is bigger than I intended or wanted it to be. I wanted a small operation. That's what I like, small beautiful, controllable things. I am proud to be the biggest but I'd rather be the best. I don't think size equates with grandeur and I prefer the latter. When I deal with large companies I'm glad I still have a staff I know personally. I have no ambition to run a huge company and it's a good thing I'm no longer in charge because in this modern age, you cannot survive without growing.
BE: Do you think the Jamaican-Caribbean landscape has the capacity for more publishers?
IR: Yes, there is room, but they have to do and try different things. I took the bold step to go into scholarly and academic publishing; you cannot come in a dither same thing, it's hard to catch up. There are opportunities for a children's book publisher; we don't have one in the Caribbean. There is also room for another textbook company. Carlong Publishers has shown that we can produce texts based on a Jamaican curriculum. The Trinidadian textbook publishers are doing well. Our experience is not unique. The University Press has made massive strides.
BE: What does the prospective author need to know before he comes to you?
IR: The author needs to do his research, investigate us to see what we do before coming with something we don't publish. We have a catalogue on our website. Don't send us a manuscript; the first contact we need is someone telling us what they are working on and if we are interested, we will ask for a proposal in which you sell the product and yourself.
We will both be clear on what you are doing, why it's different and who would be the market. We ask for something on the author and then we ask for some marketing information, who will buy it and what is your level of exposure. Then the author has to follow our style guidelines.
If we like all that we ask for the manuscript. Once the manuscript comes in, if it's a scholarly and academic book, we send it for academic review, we ask experts in the field to read it and give us an assessment. Some don't need that. The author is asked to respond to their critique/feedback and they will end up with a better manuscript.
BE: How many people do you employ?
IR: We employ 14 at all levels and we additionally have freelance proofreaders and editors. They are young, but some come into publishing thinking it's glamorous. In the early years, turnover was rapid, but things have settled down and they are good.
BE: Where do you see IRP in 20 years?
IR: I see us as a small company that does big things and with technological advances, we will keep abreast of the latest trends. My dream is that we are seen as the premier Caribbean publishers and internationally as the publisher for them to send their work to. We are getting publicity but we will not take on what we cannot sell; we want to be seen as the finest in the business.
BE: Are you happy with where you are now?
IR: We are doing okay but if we don't produce books, we don't make a profit. We are now looking at other areas such as electronic publishing and to offer books online; we cannot be dinosaurs in this business. But, money has never been the thing that drives me. I have never feared poverty; don't get me wrong, I need money like everyone else but it's not what makes me happy. The older I get, the less I need to make me happy. The business provides me with a lifeline.
I have now stepped back to enjoy life because struggle and work have highlighted my life, and if you work hard, other things will come naturally. It feels liberating not to worry about money and material things; my health and reputation are more important.
Send feedback to barbara.ellington@gleanerjm.com.
