Use the Internet to sell books, cater to niche markets, says bookseller
KUALA LUMPUR: What started as a side hustle became a full-time job for factory manager turned secondhand bookstore owner Abdul Halim Ismail, 54, from Puchong.
However, running an online business was nothing new for the father of four, who started selling used books on eBay in 2004 and mudah.my in 2008.
Halim is now active on his Facebook page Coretan Buku Terpakai, where he pens his thoughts and sells books of various genres both on the Facebook page @majalahbukuterpakai (Buku terpakai) and Shopee.
“We have no choice but to keep up with the times and use the Internet to sell our products.
“I know a bookstore owner in Kuala Lumpur who had refused to use online platforms. He said customers could come to his bookshop if they wanted to look for titles. Many of the books remained unsold and he had to close the shop.
“I have more customers ordering books online than walk-in customers.
“I also use courier services to have the books delivered to my customers or they come here to collect the books they have ordered,” said the Kelantan-born Halim.
He has some 2,000 titles in his Shopee account Ahbook’s online catalogue.
Halim said more people use the Internet to look for books, although some still prefer visiting bookshops.
He said small publishers were thriving by ramping up their marketing and by going to the readers themselves.
He said it also helped for sellers to focus on niche markets rather than trying to sell books in all fields.
He noticed that many people appreciated books with historical value, like those written by national laureates and prominent authors, like A. Samad Said and Usman Awang, as well as the satirical comic-magazine GilaGila.
Hoping to share his passion for books with others, Halim said he would not stop anyone from reading the materials at his store in Taman Saujana Puchong.
“Some sellers would cover the secondhand books in plastic sheets, but I do so only on old books that are not in good condition. The oldest I have was published in 1878 in India.
“I don’t even notice some of the customers coming in sometimes. I’ve had incidents where children would shout from the back of the shop when I turn off the lights to close the shop.
“I need to reorganise my store. It’ll be nice to have a designated corner to showcase the books that I’m reluctant to sell,” he said, as he showed some rare finds of works by prominent writer and linguist Za’ba (Tan Sri Zainal Abidin Ahmad) that he bought from individuals.