On the occasion of Independent Bookstore Day, we chat with Jacques and Anne, owners of Le Van du Livre, a travelling Francophone bookshop in Australia, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.
ABOUT THE FOUNDERS
Jacques, before Le Van Du Livre, you founded the first vous Francophone bookshope in Australia, Le Forum. Why did you decide to set it up?
I had a long experience of expatriation in many South East Asian countries and two daughters to whom I wanted to pass on French culture. Faced with the difficulties I had previously encountered, I set myself the challenge of establishing an entirely French-language bookshop shortly after my arrival in Australia in 2004.
The Forum was an active member of the Association Internationale des Librairies Francophones, which is based in Paris. Tell us a bit about this association – how many French-speaking bookshops are members?
The AILF had around a hundred members when I joined. When I became a director, I was given responsibility for booksellers in Asia and Oceania.
For two consecutive years, in Hong Kong and then Taipei, we organised meetings with the dozen or so booksellers in the region. In Australia, we invited the Melbourne bookshop.
In 2015, you were awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Tell us a little about this experience? How did this appointment come about?
It was a great honour for my team and myself to have this recognition of the work accomplished (and to come). In Australia, it was the French embassy and its dynamic cultural advisor who made the proposal, and in France, the Ministry of Culture through the Centre National du Livre (CNL).
As I had wanted to organise the ceremony locally, Sydney’s Lycée Condorcet kindly offered to make the school’s refectory available to us. I wasn’t expecting so much kindness and gratitude, and the emotion was overwhelming.
Anne, you’ve been in Australia for over 20 years and represent the children’s magazines Bayard and Milan. How and why did you decide to represent these magazines?
I was offered an opportunity to become an ambassador for the publisher in the north of Sydney, at the Killarney Heights school where my children went to school. Three years later, I was asked to become a delegate for Sydney and then for the whole of Australia.
What did the two of you do before you started selling French-language books and magazines?
Jacques: I was in telecommunications working for an international company. Some time after arriving in Australia, I decided to change careers.
Anne: Before coming to Australia, I lived in England where I taught French at university. I initially continued teaching adults and at the same time started representing the educational press.
ABOUT LE VAN DU LIVRE
Anne and Jacques, you are the people behind Le Van du Livre, a van which which travels around Australia selling French and Francophone books and magazines. Why did you set up Le Van du Livre?
Le Van du Livre is a natural extension of the bookshop within the walls. We wanted and needed to reach out to our readers. Offering diversity when we go out and about has proved very popular. Giving people the chance to browse the magazines before subscribing helps them make the best choice.
Have you always enjoyed reading?
Reading is an excellent way of nurturing your own culture. The French-language offer is rich and varied, which means you need to keep an eye on all the genres (comics, novels, albums, children’s books, etc.) and read them regularly in books and magazines.
How many months of the year are you in the van? How many visits do you make in a typical year?
When we lived in Western Australia, in Fremantle, the year was punctuated by 2 two-month trips to the east. So we crossed the Nullarbor plain about ten times and did the grand tour to the north in the second year. Since we’ve been living in Port Macquarie, for reasons of cost and ecology, we’ve limited our trips to the east coast, mainly Canberra and Sydney in the south, Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast in the north.
When you’re not on tour, where are you based and what do you do?
When we’re not on tour, we have to deal with all the administration, orders, subscriber follow-up and organising future visits. In order to optimise our trips, we create around a main event, usually in a school, meetings in other places where Francophones and Francophiles gather (Alliance Françaises, playgroups, markets, festivals, etc.).
How do you decide which books and magazines to sell?
You have to bear in mind that we can’t have everything because our space is limited. With our experience and knowledge of our different audiences, we select the books that are best suited to the customers we meet.
What are the challenges of supplying French-language books and magazines in Australia as a vendor?
Our main challenge is getting the publications from France to Australia. Magazines sometimes take 3 weeks or more to be delivered to letterboxes or get lost. In such cases, we intervene to resend the missing or damaged magazines.
Do all the books come from a single wholesaler?
No. We have access to all the publishers who work through distributors. We (and other booksellers) order from them.
You’re celebrating 10 years of Van du Livre this year. First of all, congratulations. How has the Van du Livre changed over the last 10 years? What have you learnt? Do you have any highlights?
All our itineraries are listed on our website right from the start. While we were in Canberra in February this year, we realised that with just a few days to spare, we had done our first tour in February 2014. So we had to get the word out! Over the past ten years, our offer has focused more on the press and press subscriptions.
What is your favourite French-language book?
I’m currently reading the book by Eric Berti Français d’Australie 1788-1988. He was Consul General to Australia from 2012 to 2015 and has surrounded himself with historians, anthropologists and academics to help us discover the French men and women who left their mark on Australia’s history.
What are your most popular titles?
We advocate diversity and rather than books, we recommend publishing houses such as Talents Hauts “Des livres qui bousculent les idées reçues” (Books that shake up preconceived ideas) or l’école des loisirs. This publisher also offers a subscription system corresponding to the French school year, during which 8 books are sent out at a rate of 1 per month. Books are selected from the 8 age groups on offer for a bundled price of around $100.
Are most of your customers French speakers or people learning French?
Our offer is aimed at all age groups. In the Alliance Françaises and other language schools, we target learners. In schools, children often have English-speaking parents. With this in mind, we have bilingual books in which French and English are present, without being translations. This reflects the vast majority of the families we meet.
Can you order French-language books that you don’t already have on request?
We did this for many years. The cost price for small quantities is high and the transport costs exorbitant. So we don’t do it any more.
Why buy books from Le Van du Livre?
Buying a book or magazine from Le Van du Livre means sharing a moment of conviviality with the other buyers and us (Anne and Jacques). It’s also a way of supporting the French Books On Wheels Inc association, which has been working for 10 years to promote French culture and language throughout Australia.
Anything else you’d like to share with us?
A big thank you to Matilda Marseillaise for all her work in informing the French-speaking and Francophile public in Australia about events and players in the French-speaking world.
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We thank Jacques and Anne for the interview and we can’t wait to see Le Van du Livre in our city soon!
KEY INFO FOR LE VAN DU LIVRE
WHAT: A travelling Francophone bookshop in Australia
WHERE: Consult the itinerary for Le Van du Livre here
HOW: Head to the location stated in their itinerary or visit them online
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