The Madrid Book Fair will be held this year from October 2 and not in May , as was traditional. The postponement decided by the Guild of Booksellers responds to the crisis situation caused by the COVID-19 virus, which is paralyzing all public events in the city.

The booksellers, as EL MUNDO has learned, are confident that the health situation will improve in the days before May, but they believe that it will not be possible to carry out the works prior to the fair in April. Colombia, the guest country of the Fair, has been informed of the postponement.

In Barcelona , the Llibreters Guild still has a decision on what to do with Sant Jordi Day on April 23.

In the publishing business, the greatest concern is that of booksellers , the weakest link in the chain. "Because the fear is that their clients will abandon them on digital platforms, " explains a former member of the board of the Booksellers' Guild.

Bookstores are, for the most part, small companies with little capacity to withstand a stressful situation like the present one and faced with giants with enormous financial capacity. In addition, customer loyalty depends in part on a social agenda (presentations and others) that they have had to cancel . In Madrid, for example, the Chapter One Festival has been canceled.

Wednesday, according to sources in the sector, was a normal day in Madrid bookstores. This Thursday is the first one in which the customers' rout is felt. The booksellers have stopped receiving the commercials and the temporary closure of the businesses is beginning to be on the agenda.

And the publishers? The concern, according to Antonio María Ávila, director of the Federation of the Editors' Guild, focuses on the freezing of exports . The fairs in London, Bologna, Bogotá and Buenos Aires have been canceled or have excluded Spanish professionals for public health reasons. "January had been a good month. Now, contacts are still ongoing but there are doubts. Last year, exports were worth 3,000 million euros. The Madrid Book Fair, on the other hand, invoiced 10 million."

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