Helena from Portugal susses out the Woodbine way

Helena and Dawn.

A new face in Woodbine Books over the past three days was Helena Santos from Portugal, in Kilcullen to see how independent bookshops here operate, writes Brian Byrne.

Like Dawn Behan of Woodbine, Helena is the owner of an independent bookshop, Livraria Fonte de Letras, in the popular tourist town of Évora in central Portugal. Through the European and International Booksellers Federation she got the opportunity to visit a counterpart in Ireland on an exchange programme, to see the similarities and differences.

"It's 'exactly the same but totally different', I wrote on my Instagram," she told the Diary yesterday, her last day before flying home again. Exactly the same in terms of the struggles and daily tasks of running a small independent enterprise against competition from bookstore chains and the online discount sellers. "Dawn, with her low and calm voice, is another bookseller in great tension trying to hold all the ends," Helena noted in her Instagram and Facebook reflections on Kilcullen. "These days she has school books weighing on her shoulders (and in her arms, when she has to carry all the boxes to the three schools in town)."

It is different in that she sees the Woodbine team and their customers engaging in a lot of chat, which she says isn't the same back in Évora. "They talk a lot here, and I think maybe I should be doing more of that with my customers," she says with a laugh. "I always seem to be so busy, I should come out from behind the computer and talk with them."

Helena originally worked in advertising in Lisbon, but 23 years ago employment in that industry contracted sharply and she returned to her home town, some distance from Évora. She opened a bookshop with a friend, also from advertising, with the help of a government grant. "They had a scheme where they supported the opening of bookshops in towns that didn't have one." It was successful for ten years, attracting customers from well beyond the 11,000 population town for the books, for music concerts  and other in-shop events. But after the global economic shock of 2013, keeping it going in a small place became a struggle. 

Helena moved to the area capital, Évora, which has a population of more than 54,000. Though she faces more direct competition there from the chain bookstores, she has developed the business by stocking books from small independent publishers and authors, which the chains don't accommodate.

"I don't do best-sellers, but I like to show that there are alternative, maybe controversial books so people can think in a wider way, especially in politics." This has made the Fonte de Letras a go-to shop for those who value such alternatives. With Évora a UNESCO World Heritage town since 1986, the shop is also popular with tourists, and Helena makes a point of stocking both Portuguese and Spanish language editions. "And because we have so many tourists, I also stock Portuguese literature in English and in French."

In her few days in Kilcullen, she was struck by the number of young people in town she saw with books and coming into Woodbine to buy. "At home, teenagers don't seem to be reading, even my own 16-year-old doesn't read so much any more." Like Woodbine's Dawn does in County Kildare, Helena regularly visits schools in Évora to try and encourage students to read more. "It's very difficult, but I see it as part of my mission."

Helena stayed in Bardons while in Kilcullen, and has posted a number of photographs and thoughts about the town on her social media. She clearly enjoyed the experience, including activities after the day's work. "At dinner, the booksellers get together for a nice girls talk: bookstores, customers, book clubs. Thank you, Dawn."

The exchange programme is relatively new, and Dawn says a number of Irish independent operators have taken part, travelling to various countries. "It's a good way to see how others are selling books, and our Paula has applied for it," she adds. And for Helena, has her trip worked out well? 

"Yes, I'm going back with some new ideas," she smiles. "And I have left a list of Portuguese books in English with Dawn, so people here might like to learn about our writers." 

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