Matter of Africa children?s
book publisher urged
to focus on wholesale
by Sarah Brouillard
THE PUBLISHING INDUSTRYpractically sets up independent publishers for failure, says PaulDixon, president and co-owner of Matter of Africa America Time Corp.,in Minneapolis. It?s one of three winners of this year?s Upsize GrowthChallenge.
Selling books through popular e-commercesites, such as BN.com (Barnes & Noble?s Web site) and Amazon.com,is a process fraught with obstacles and disadvantages. Not only doeshis company have to discount its books by 55 percent, but it also hasto wait up to 120 days for payment.
And the Web sites always reserve the right to return all unsold books.That?s why only 3 percent of the company?s sales come from bookstores.
The company has four titles, with stories taking place in a small townin Mississippi. The main character, Papa Lemon, is based on a realperson, the co-owners? grandfather (Dixon?s cousin, Lehman Riley, isthe author).
With his magic train, which is a time machine, the supporting childcharacters journey into the past to witness several historic events,such as the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.?s ?I Have a Dream? speech,and meet important people, such as Harriet Tubman.
The company posted $31,095 in revenue for 2006, mostly from conferencesand trade shows and speaking fees from school presentations.
Last year, Dixon and his cousin went on a ?whirlwind tour? ofconventions and expositions across the country. This year, they want tocapitalize on all the contacts they made during their travels.
Dixon says he wants to triple business this year, while also making aprofit and paying down debt ? mostly in the form of a $50,000 creditline.
While it?s difficult to be an independent publisher, Dixon says hiscompany benefits by having a niche. According to his market research,there are no children?s book series that use a grandparent as a maincharacter.
Elin Raymond, president of The Sage Group, a Minneapolis-basedmarketing and communications firm, says the company should use itslimited resources wisely. Instead of selling school by school, thecompany should focus its energy almost exclusively on the nationalwholesale market.
?I would skip the PTAs and the individual consumer-type shows, and goto the ones like the librarians? associations and the teachers?associations,? she says.
She also advises the company to build a comprehensive learning packagearound the Papa Lemon books. A ?heritage journal? ? in which a childcan research and write about his or her own family heritage ? is oneexample of how to expand and personalize the curriculum, and build onthe themes presented in the original books.
Michele Vaillancourt, an attorney with Minneapolis-based Winthrop &Weinstine, says it?s important for Matter of Africa to protect itsintellectual property.
After confirming that Dixon had copyright protection for the Papa Lemoncharacter and the books themselves, Vaillancourt says he needs to getthat information on the company?s Web site.
?You just need a line at the bottom,? she says. ?Your Web developer should know that.?
Also, make sure all contributors sign agreements that spell out whatproperty belongs to them, and what belongs to the company, she says.Otherwise, one of them can run off and make money off the company?sideas.
On the technology front, scalability is one area Matter of Africashould explore carefully, says Kirk Hoaglund, CEO of Clientek, theMinneapolis-based information technology consulting firm. Shoring upits Web site to prepare for a potential jump in online sales ? whichcould happen any day, especially in the event of some unexpectedpublicity ? will ensure all sales are captured.
James Alberts, a Clientek technology consultant, says the companyshould also prepare for the increased prevalence of technology forreading books. Instead of lugging around hardbound textbooks, hebelieves today?s young children, upon entering college, will use tabletPCs that contain their curriculum.
?The technology market ? and technology itself ? is driven by the demands of the people who use it,? Alberts says.
With all the red tape and organizational layers that complicate thepublic school system, Rick Wall, CEO of St. Paul-based Highland Bank,says the company may want to explore the home-school market. ?They maywant more experiential learning,? Wall says. Instead of using the booksas curriculum supplements, parents may want to use the books as actualtextbooks.
Wall says he wonders if a change in business model is in order. Sinceschool presentations have generated more revenue than actual booksales, perhaps the company should formally shift its focus.
?You wouldn?t be the first business that started off with one thing andfound out you?re really doing something else better.?
Paul Dixon, Matter of Africa America Time Corp.: 612.730.8217; info@papalemonedu.com; www.papalemonedu.com[WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY?]
?ABOUT WEB READINESS
A lack of “scalability” with a Web site can break a company, says Kirk Hoaglund, Clientek. Publishers have a knack for sparking publicity quickly, whether it be a visit on the Oprah show or a plug on Good Morning America. The result ? lots of Web site hits ? can ramp up sales, or bring down the entire Web site if it is ill-prepared for the increase in activity.
?ABOUT THINKING BIG
Think national, not local, and wholesale, not piecemeal, when it comes to selling books, says Elin Raymond, The Sage Group. Stick to the national conventions, rather than selling school by school or individual by individual. There is strength in numbers.
?ABOUT TRADEMARKS
Papa Lemon may be a fictional character in a book, but it's also a valuable piece of intellectual property. Make sure it is protected with a copyright, so others can't steal the company's ideas, says Michele Vaillancourt, Winthrop & Weinstine. Similarly, put a paper and pen in front of all contributors to make sure they understand what belongs to them, and what belongs to the company.
?ABOUT BUSINESS MODELS
It's never too late to rethink a business model, says Rick Wall, Highland Bank. If school presentations are a lucrative and expense-free source of revenue, why not shift the company's focus toward that direction? If a market is too complex to tap into ? such as the public school system ? try a simpler but related one. Wall suggests the home-school market, where parents are free to make their own curriculum decisions for their children.
