RACHEL Wood set up Rare Birds Book Club to encourage more people to read and celebrate fiction by female authors. The business has customers in 23 countries and readers can join an online book club to discuss with others what the book means.
Name: Rachel Wood
Age: 31
Position: Founder/director
WHAT’S YOUR BUSINESS CALLED?
Rare Birds Book Club
WHERE IS IT BASED?
Edinburgh
WHY DID YOU SET UP THE BUSINESS?
SETTING up my own business was never in the plan. I’m from Canada and moved to Edinburgh to do a masters in creative writing 10 years ago. I worked as a copywriter for a digital marketing agency and then started freelancing. I thought it seemed like a fun idea and went from there. I built what I wanted but couldn’t find. The way millennials find things to read can be overwhelming as they love shopping online. Two years ago my feedback from friends was that they would make time to read if they knew they would like the books. I read a lot anyway and I always love recommending books. I started on a shoestring budget and with my marketing background I could build a website. I juggled the business while working full-time and now the business covers the cost of itself.
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HOW DOES IT WORK?
WHEN I started it was an experiment. The book comes all wrapped and a postcard tells you what it is and why it was picked.
It is always paperback fiction published within the past 12 months. It is all female authors and we celebrate fiction by and about women. I read all the time in the background. I now know what members respond to. It had to be a page turner and the reader must enjoy it like they would a drama on Netflix. It naturally appeals to women more but we have a dozen men in the group too. When we got our first male subscriber I thought it was a mistake.
WHAT IS YOUR TARGET MARKET?
MILLENIAL women are the biggest chunk of the market but our youngest customer is 16 and the oldest is 88 so it is a wide audience. It is aimed at anyone who wants to read more. We have lots of members who live in rural areas. An online book club is part of the subscription. The bulk of the subscribers are in the UK but we have customers in 23 countries including Japan, the US, Canada, Spain and Germany. It can be
hard to source English books in non-English-speaking countries.
HOW IS IT DIFFERENT FROM COMPETING BUSINESSES?
THERE are definitely others out there but we’re the most focused on the experience of reading and the community around that. Ours is a surprise and comes with an introduction before you read the book so by the time you open it you’re willing to give it a go. The online book club sets us apart – we do an in depth review and share trivia, background information and history. Everyone can join in.
IS SCOTLAND A GOOD PLACE FOR THIS TYPE OF BUSINESS?
ABSOLUTELY. Lots of people in Scotland are enthusiastic about reading. Edinburgh is a lovely place to work – we’re based at Leith Shore. There’s an entrepreneurial focus in Scotland and lots of people are there to give you advice.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT RUNNING THE BUSINESS?
INTRODUCING people to books they would never have found on their own. People email to say that they haven’t read in years which makes you excited and feel like you’re part of something. It makes the other hard stuff worth it.
WHAT IS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE IN RUNNING THE BUSINESS?
THE logistics of shipping is the most challenging bit. We have thousands of orders and it’s a complex puzzle but I enjoy all of it which was a surprise.
I’m the only full-time staff member at the moment and we have three people who work part-time on a freelance basis. We plan to hire another full-time staff member really soon.
WHERE DO YOU HOPE THE BUSINESS WILL BE IN 10 YEARS’ TIME?
THE same but larger scale. We’re encouraging people to read for fun and the spirit of that will never change. I want to do more author events so the community can meet in real life. We’re expanding to two books a month now. The big thing is encouraging people to read for fun. It can be intimidating and people say they don’t read, they watch TV. It’s about getting the message that reading is for everyone out there.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
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