New changes in the distribution of books in Catalonia. From this February, the labels of the Group 62 (Edicions 62, Columna, Empúries, Proa, Destino or Pòrtic, among others) will stop distributing books with Ágora and will go to Logista Libros, 50% owned by the Group Planeta (parent group of 62) and which is the largest distributor in Spain, based in Guadalajara. Despite causing some surprise, much of the industry took it for granted that this would happen at one point or another.
The failed start-up of Entredos – the distribution logistics platform that Ágora shares with Punxes – caused numerous dysfunctions in the book sector when it began operating in August 2022, which caused a group of publishers mostly linked to Xarxa de Llibres left and presented a million-dollar demand, which in return hit the Enciclopèdia Group -to which Ágora belongs-, which for months has left numerous collaborators unpaid and is pending an employment regulation file , whose report was presented yesterday and begins a month of negotiations with the works committee.
The director general of Enciclopèdia, Joan Abellà, confirmed the information that had been sent to booksellers to be able to make new orders and returns from now on. “We become small and endure”, he pointed out.
The president of the Booksellers Guild of Catalonia, Eric del Arco, appreciated the calmness with which the change has been received, “without fuss”, since it guarantees the operation of the system.
Sources in the sector familiar with these movements wanted to highlight the three-way agreement – Group 62, Ágora and Logista – to make an orderly change, minimize damage and not worsen Enciclopedia’s situation, bearing in mind that it could be part of the solution, one more step to try to get out of the impasse in which Encyclopaedia finds itself.
