Fifth Sharjah Booksellers Conference Concludes With Over 300 Professional Meetings Driving New Opportunities
Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) has concluded the fifth edition of the Sharjah Booksellers Conference, held on 19 and 20 September at Expo Centre Sharjah, following two days of discussions on ways to develop bookselling businesses, diversify revenue streams for independent bookstores, and improve access to titles for readers across local and international markets.
The conference, which featured more than 300 professional meetings, brought together 912 participants, including booksellers, publishers, distributors and representatives of online bookselling platforms, from 99 countries.
On the second day, the programme focused on the practical aspects of managing the bookselling businesses, the role of bookstores in enriching the cultural life of their communities, and the use of digital tools to better understand readers’ needs and facilitate book discovery.
Supporting sustainable growth
Mansour Al Hassani, Director of Publishing Services at SBA, said: “Through the Sharjah Booksellers Conference, we work to expand the range of markets accessible to professionals across the book industry. We seek to create new avenues for distributors and booksellers to connect with partners from different countries and commercial contexts. The broader the attendee network becomes on our event platform, the greater the opportunities for books to reach new markets and readers. This is what we seek to strengthen with every edition.”
He added: “Under the guidance of Her Highness Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Chairperson of SBA, we are committed to ensuring that the conference serves not only as a professional avenue, but a platform that is able to deliver tangible impact beyond the event itself through relationships that continue, opportunities that develop, and shared expertise that translates into practical steps within participants’ own markets.
“Our aim is for participants to return to their businesses with new connections, opportunities as well as knowledge they can build on, and see the impact of their meetings extend well beyond the conference’s two days.”
Exhibitors from 29 countries represent broad cross-section
The conference featured 65 exhibitors from 29 countries, representing a broad spectrum of organisations across the book industry. These included publishers, distributors, bookstores, literary agencies, translation and printing companies, as well as organisations specialising in children’s books, education, academic and technical content, book data and rights management, software solutions for publishers, and cultural and research institutions.
The fifth edition also welcomed participants from Costa Rica, Zambia, Peru, Portugal, Ukraine and Kosovo for the first time in the conference’s history.
Global perspectives on bookselling
Adi Ekatama, director of the publishing division of Gramedia in Indonesia, delivered a keynote address, tracing Gramedia’s evolution from a traditional bookstore into a broader retail business and its more recent return to bookselling at the heart of its identity. He highlighted how changing reader behaviour, the growth of e-commerce and the rise of community-focused independent bookstores are reshaping the role of physical bookshops, with Gramedia increasingly positioning its stores as spaces for discovery, cultural engagement and community interaction.
Highlighting the continuing importance of physical bookstores alongside digital channels, Ekatama said: “Today we are choosing to be a bookstore again, because we believe the greatest purpose of books is to keep us human.”
Dr Brigitte Boulad of Diwan Bookstores delivered a presentation titled “Where Books Build Communities: Reimagining the Bookstore as a Cultural Hub,” exploring the role of bookstores in bringing readers together around books and strengthening their connection to the cultural life of their communities. Dr Boulad highlighted Diwan’s Cultural Hub, a dedicated space within the bookstore that hosts talks on topics ranging from storytelling and music to fashion ethics and climate. She said the aim is to make subjects that may otherwise feel intimidating more accessible to people, while creating opportunities for communities to learn and engage together.
Dr Boulad added: “We want to make the initiative reachable to everybody and bring together different ages, communities and walks of life.”
Supporting women’s professional growth and visibility
The PublisHer Lounge hosted a session, titled “Scaling Without Losing Your Soul: Growing with Purpose,” featuring Nadia Wassef of Diwan Bookstores and a member of the PublisHer Industry Board, alongside Dr Brigitte Boulad.
The PublisHer Lounge also hosted a presentation titled “Be Seen, Be Heard: Building Your Professional Visibility,” delivered by author Carla De La Vega, a former CNN correspondent, bestselling author, and Founder of IWEI, a platform focused on women’s empowerment and inclusive leadership.
Workshops and roundtables on growth and reader engagement
The conference participants had a fresh opportunity on Day 2 to attend third and fourth rounds of workshops and roundtable discussions, selecting topics from a programme comprising 14 international workshops and six Arabic-language workshops.
Topics related to the growth of independent bookstores addressed ways to diversify revenue streams, manage supply chains, and expand a bookstore’s impact without increasing its physical footprint. Sessions also explored how to move beyond simply promoting books to building bookstores that become destinations for readers, how bookstores can attract people who do not regularly read, experiences in developing a shared national marketplace for independent bookstores, and the role of collaboration between publishers and booksellers.
Discussions also covered building reader communities around comics and organising children’s literature festivals that foster a love of reading, as part of a broader conversation about the role of booksellers in supporting the future of the book industry.
Digital tools and Arabic book distribution.
Digital development sessions focused on the use of artificial intelligence to better understand customers and the role of metadata in increasing digital book sales. They also explored the use of social media to reach readers and the potential of print-on-demand services to make books available in wider markets.
Sessions on Arabic book distribution addressed growth opportunities, challenges facing distributors, and the role of logistics hubs in improving distribution operations. Topics included the impact of co-publishing on distributors’ work and how international book fairs can be used to showcase Arabic titles and expand their reach.
The conference concluded with business-to-business meetings that expanded opportunities for collaboration, alongside the “Meet a Mentor” programme at the PublisHer Lounge, which enabled participants to book one-on-one sessions with leading women in the book industry, discuss their professional questions, and benefit from their experience.
