Interliber 2
Episode · #71
SAJAMSKI RADIO - Interliber 2
Guest Interliber 2May 3, 2026
Interliber 2
About this episode
What you'll hear in this conversation
The Croatian publishing industry faces a paradox: a perceived decline in readership, especially among younger generations, coexists with the enduring vibrancy of Interliber, the country's largest book fair. This episode speaks to that tension through the experiences of publishers like Team Press, Fractura, and Sandorf. They discuss how a major physical event remains vital for direct customer engagement and market feedback, even as digital strategies struggle to find traction. You will hear how some publishers maintain their standing not by aggressive expansion, but by simply enduring while others contract, and how targeted pricing can be a more effective anti-piracy measure than restrictive digital rights management.
Insights from the conversation
What to take from this episode
01
For Team Press, which operates without its own retail store, Interliber isn't just a sales event. It's the primary annual opportunity to meet readers directly, gauge demand, and gather feedback for future titles. For niche publishers, the fair acts as an irreplaceable market research and community-building hub.
02
Despite the perceived shift in reading habits, especially among younger audiences, Team Press has seen little interest in its basic PDF e-book offerings since their introduction two years ago. Simply offering digital versions isn't enough to capture the online reader; a fragmented digital presence, especially for smaller publishers, struggles to compete with established platforms or aggregated content.
03
Team Press combats e-book piracy by offering digital rentals at 70% less than print, making some titles "very cheap to borrow and read." Instead of relying on restrictive digital rights management, a publisher can make pirating unattractive by pricing legitimate digital content so low that the effort to find an illegal copy outweighs the cost of purchase.
04
Ninety percent of Team Press's catalog consists of non-fiction, serious journalism, and scientific literature, attracting a specific profile of reader. In a market challenged by declining readership, deep specialization allows a publisher to cultivate a dedicated audience that actively seeks out their specific content, rather than trying to appeal to the broader, shrinking general market.
05
Fractura became a larger publisher "because others shrunk more than we grew," maintaining an output of 60 to 80 titles annually. In a consolidating industry, market share is often gained not through aggressive expansion, but by simply sustaining consistent output and operations while competitors scale back or disappear.
06
Fractura ensures its editors are present at Interliber, offering "first-hand recommendations" for the 20 new titles launched at the fair, including works by Nobel laureates. For new releases, direct interaction with the people who shaped the books—the editors—provides a level of personalized guidance and authority that no online browsing experience can replicate, making the fair a unique sales channel.
07
Sandorf anticipates "many people" coming to Interliber specifically for the "Interliber discounts" and to pick up new releases "fresh from the printer." Even in an age of year-round online shopping, the physical book fair retains its role as a crucial annual sales peak, driven by the unique combination of promotional pricing and the immediate gratification of new print editions.