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A First-Time Frankfurt Experience

A First-Time Frankfurt Experience

By Cédric Boutin Date: January 26, 2022

In conjunction with the launch of our new podcast aimed at emerging exporters, B2B: Bookfair Beginners to Bosses, our Communications Officer, Cédric Boutin, shares his experience attending the Frankfurt Book Fair for the first time last October. 

 

Between October 20 and 24, 2021, the international publishing industry came together in Frankfurt for the first time since before the start of the pandemic. The 73rd edition of the Frankfurt Book Fair operated under the motto “Re:connect: Welcome back to Frankfurt”, but for some of us, it was our first introduction to the world’s largest book fair, and our first opportunity to connect with people in the industry.

When I joined Livres Canada Books as Communications Officer in the summer of 2021, the possibility of traveling to conferences and fairs was mentioned, but it felt more like wishful thinking at the time. Most of us had barely left our houses, let alone the country. As vaccination rates increased and COVID cases stabilized, there was a sense of a return to normalcy in our day-to-day environments. This was encouraging for our prospects of attending the Frankfurt Book Fair in Canada’s Guest of Honour Year, something that had been planned for several years but had been postponed because of the pandemic. It was a project that our entire team, along with many other partners, were working hard towards, with some uncertainty as to how it would play out. Luckily for us, the Canadian government authorized travel for business purposes, and the Frankfurter Buchmesse (as it’s called in German) did incredible work to ensure that the fair grounds were a safe space to host a limited number of visitors. Our hopes became reality, and we were booked for Germany.

Serendipity

After 731 days since the last in-person edition of the fair, Frankfurt was once again turned into a marketplace for content and a celebration of books as it welcomed 73,500 attendees along with 2,000 exhibitors from more than 80 countries. As someone who was attending the fair for the first time, I was surprised by how large it all was–-the venue, the stands, the events. After talking to several of our Canadian exhibitors, some of whom had been coming to Frankfurt for decades, I quickly found out that this was a unique year. In comparison, the last in-person edition in October 2019 hosted over 300,000 individuals from 100 countries, as well as 7,500 exhibitors. Many of those returning found it to be a quieter affair this time around. Although not as busy, the smaller capacity allowed publishers to have more time for meeting with colleagues, business partners and friends. The hallways that once saw exhibitors running from one stand to another to make their scheduled meetings in time now fostered longer conversations and greater potential for deals. The Frankfurt Book Fair brings together the people whose business is ideas and provides them the space to discuss. Even though it was not what fairgoers were used to, they were able to find ways to appreciate what made this year different.

A Safe Environment

To ensure the safety of all participants, the Frankfurter Buchmesse organizers developed a comprehensive health and safety plan for the fair, in keeping with the Covid-19 regulations issued by the state of Hesse and in close cooperation with the local health authorities and the Frankfurt Congress Center. Visitors were only permitted to enter after they demonstrated that they fulfilled the applicable requirements, which meant they had to show documentation confirming that they are fully vaccinated, or that they have been tested for Covid-19 and are negative. The generous layout of all levels in the exhibition halls and the limited total number of participants helped prevent any crowding. Overall, it felt like an extremely safe environment to share a passion for good stories and to experience creativity.

A Long Time Coming

Excited to be there would be an understatement. Despite everyone wearing masks, you could see the smiles shining through when we greeted one another at the newly designed Canada Stand in Hall 6.0. It was heartwarming to see how much this meant to everyone, as it signaled a step in the right direction after a difficult year-and-a-half in both personal and business matters. Over my first few months at Livres Canada Books, I had only gone into the office a handful of times and had yet to meet some of my colleagues outside of Zoom. Four of us traveled to Germany, three of us to attend the fair for the first time. It was a special way of bonding as a team and learning from one another about our roles within the organization and our experiences within the publishing industry. Frankfurt presented us with an opportunity to not only put faces to some of the names (and email addresses) that we had been communicating with throughout the pandemic, but to also see firsthand the effect that an event like this has on independent publishers.

The Buchmesse is a key business event that enables contact between important players in their respective markets. It helps publishers pave the way to innovative business models in the industry, as discussed in the Rights Roundtable discussion with our own Canadian publishers. Only so much can be done virtually, and this was apparent after spending the week in Frankfurt. “The desire for in-person interactions is once again bringing the international book and publishing industry together in Frankfurt,” said Juergen Boos, director of the book fair, at a press conference opening the event. “Back to business, however, does not mean things are now back to normal.” As we enter another year of the pandemic, we, like many of you, are keeping a very close eye on how book fair and other event organizers are responding to rapidly changing situations and contexts. But now more than ever we recognize the importance of meeting face-to-face with our colleagues and partners in Canada and abroad.

Looking back, I am thankful to have had the opportunity to attend the Frankfurt Book Fair. This experience helped me grasp a better understanding of the publishing industry, the humans that we aim to support at Livres Canada Books, and the importance of these events for rights sales. The fair, after all, is a crossroads where people and culture meet and I look forward to the chance to go back, this time to re:connect.