Publishing industry insider Jane Friedman unpacks what happened to the indie distributor, and how the world of small press is struggling in the aftermath.A worker gathers books for delivery from the warehouse floor at Amazon's distribution centre in Phoenix, Arizona. Small Press Distribution, one of the oldest independent book distributors in the United States, suddenly closed up shop on March 28, leaving hundreds of independent publishers in the lurch.
"I don't think anyone was surprised that it might go away, but I think it was just the suddenness that one day they were shipping out books, literally, and the next day they were like, 'We're done.'"Friedman says this situation poses an immediate "logistical" problem for small presses because of all the books now left sitting in warehouses with no distributor to move them.
She also points out that this dissolution could have unexpected financial consequences for the independent presses involved. Ultimately, the loss of Small Press Distribution will be felt. The smaller publishers they serviced play a crucial role in nurturing new talent, Friedman says, yet "they're not well protected at all."