Status: 10/21/2021 8:14 a.m.
The shortage of paper is also a problem for publishers. Books take longer to produce. And reprints are made more difficult. Book prices could soon rise.
During the book fair there is a paper alarm in the industry: Rising energy prices, the lack of wood and supply chain difficulties have made paper scarce and expensive. While a ton of cellulose still cost a good 650 euros at the end of 2020, it is now more than 1000 euros that are being charged. And the prices for recovered paper have also exploded – by 78 percent since the beginning of the year. At around 200 euros per ton, waste paper is more expensive than ever.
The paper crisis hits the book publishers at the worst possible time. The Christmas business will start in a few weeks – and books are still one of the most popular gifts.
Paper prices have skyrocketed recently.
Image: picture alliance / dpa
Subsequent editions hardly possible
The consequences can already be felt. As the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels found out, the lead time, the time for the print job including paper orders, has increased four to six times. In particular, reprints are currently hardly possible. Publishers have to plan for a higher circulation right away. That makes the calculation more difficult, says the Börsenverein.
Art book publishers in particular are likely to suffer at the moment. According to the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels, short-term orders for special graphic paper and cardboard for bindings have become more difficult.
CH Beck has procurement problems
Other publishers are also affected. CH Beck admits procurement problems. The Munich publishing house is concerned about the “dramatically worsened shortage of all graphic paper on the market”. Recycled papers are currently almost no longer available on the market.
The travel publisher Mairdumont is also feeling the paper shortage. The publisher of the “Baedeker” travel guide claims to be struggling with significantly longer delivery times and higher costs.
“Should the paper shortage persist, and should the costs remain high in the long term, this could ultimately have an impact on deliverability and book prices,” warns the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels. At the moment the situation has no impact on end customers, a spokesman for the Börsenverein said tagesschau.de. “We don’t expect it to happen in the Christmas season either.”
Take care of your Christmas present at an early stage!
Jonathan Beck, head of the CH Beck publishing house, advises, however, to take care of Christmas presents early this year: “I am very much afraid that people will not be able to be sure of getting every book at short notice for Christmas this year,” said he the “Handelsblatt”.
Most publishers are not yet planning any increases in book prices. In the next year, however, prices are likely to be raised because printing prices have also risen, according to Hanser-Verlag.
Book price increases are more likely in the next year
In the medium term, the shortage of paper will have an impact on prices, “even if not as abruptly as in the case of heating oil or gas,” says publishing director Beck. Calculating a more extensive hardcover for less than 30 euros is becoming increasingly difficult.
Karin Schmidt-Friederichs, head of the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels, points out that book prices have only developed moderately over the past two decades. In this respect, she considers slight price increases to be justified.