Kochi:
It's a great time for book lovers in the city. Just when one was ruing that not enough book store franchises were present in Kochi to cater to the enthusiastic readership here, two major brands have set shop.
Hardly a month after Penguin launched its exclusive outlet in Kochi, Just Books, the community library chain that has branches all over the country, has opened its Kochi outlet at Panamppilly Nagar.
And within 24 days of its coming, the library already has 180 members. All the outlets of Just Books are inter-connected enabling a member to take and return the books from any of its branch in the country.
Every book has a Radio Frequency Identification Device implanted on it that helps the members to locate the book and get details about its availability.
Using the electronic kiosk system at the library, the member can select any book at any branch in the country and the book will be made available in a week's time, assures Alex Joseph, the franchise owner of the Kochi branch.
Joseph says that the response from readers in the city has been very encouraging so far. "We decided to open the branch in Kochi taking in view the city's vast readership.
The response is so good that we are planning to start more branches here," adds Joseph who is also the Chief Operating Officer of Strata Retail and Technology Services Pvt Ltd, the company that manages Just Books.
According to him, the books will be put to quality tests before they make it to the shelves. "You won't find any pirated versions of books here," he says.
The company also has an arrangement with top publishers in the country whereby readers can get their desired books within a day or two after they are officially published.
There are over 12,500 books in the Kochi branch, ranging from fiction, non-fiction, magazines and a vast section of kids' books.
Its all-India collection of books goes upto a whopping 5 lakhs, that readers can avail through the electronic system. The library also has a home delivery system, where books can be delivered to members who live within 4 km radius of the library.