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Strip Covers

ions

ions

New Member
Anyone familiar with them? They're evil. Mostly. A Strip Cover is usually a mass market paperback, sometimes trade paperback, that a book chain has determined no longer has a place in their invemtory. The cover is ripped off and sent to the publisher for credit while the rest of the book is destroyed. Hopefully recycled. Inside most mass market booksis a blurb near the front htat goes something like this:

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as "unsold and destroyed" to the publisher and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this "stripped book."
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So having possession of a strip cover book makes you theif apparently. Seems to me the author isn't going to get any payment when the cover of their novel is ripped off and the rest thrown in a big steel bin. Granted is you have the resources to buy the book you should but with all the underfunded libraries in the world - both school and public we're tearing covers off books and destroying them. How this works out to be the most economical practice for publishers is beyond me, perhaps someone here can explain. I do realize that giving books away would cannabalize the selling of books but there are ways around that. And it's not just crap that gets strip covered. I've seen Rand, Kay, Dickens, Shakespeare and even Tolstoy! A strip covered War and Peace! Of course strip covers are not completely evil. Many, most in fact, are books that deserve to be destroyed. Of course these are also books that never should have been to begin with.

This practice to me is gross. The environmental cost and the waste of tremendous books is disgusting. Book lovers like the majority of us here are not interested in having personal libraries of strip covers -- or books damaged in any way. Could books destined for stripping not be stamped on the cover with something indicating that the book is no longer to be sold but donated to a public program? There have to be alternatives to strip covering. Book lovers don't let publishers strip cover!
 
I agree the practice is wasteful and downright creepy. Some sort of unremovable stamp would be far more logical and not wasteful.
 
I never understood that message until just now. I was like, "How does ripping the cover off make it illegal? Maybe the person who owns it didn't take good care of it..." That is sad, though. But I don't hear of anyone buying books without covers, except for used books at flea markets like I get. I doubt the selling goes on very often.
 
I've never heard of the practice. It's sad to hear about books being destroyed, but I can certainly understand the publisher wanting to protect their interest.
 
I've never heard of this either, it does seem they could donate the unsold copies to libraries and write it off or something better than destroying the books:eek:.
 
because it costs a lot to ship them back, and most places have to return them for credit. stripping and throwing them away is the most economical way of doing that. If you had to ship them back, usually the cost of shipping would eat up whatever credit you were going to get, and the publisher needs some kind of proof you didn't sell them (the cover).

same thing happens with magazines.
 
venusunfolding said:
because it costs a lot to ship them back, and most places have to return them for credit. stripping and throwing them away is the most economical way of doing that. If you had to ship them back, usually the cost of shipping would eat up whatever credit you were going to get, and the publisher needs some kind of proof you didn't sell them (the cover).

same thing happens with magazines.
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That makes sense.
 
I was unaware of this practice too and always wondered about that little inclusion of purchasing the book without a cover. How wasteful!
 
I had thought of the cost of shipping and I bet you're right. It's not a good enough justification for this practice, but I bet you're right. I wonder if all costs to strip covering have been considered. I bet not. Is the labour to do the strip covering considered? It does take time to strip covers off a pile of books. They're still being handled the same amount as if they were to be shipped and then the handling of the covers for shipping. I would also hazard a guess that the majority of companies invlolved in strip covering also have decent courier accounts. Both the stores and the publishers/distributers. Not even considering the labour to handle the additional waste/recycling. So bottomline, both metaphorically and fiscally, the environment is being pissed on and books are being wasted to possibly save a few bucks. If publishers and stores were even a little bit wiser about how many copies to run and carry this wouldn't be nearly as large of a problem as it is.

How is strip covering better than a smaller credit sent from the publisher and a price reduction to clear them out?
 
I used to work for Borders and they did this all the time. I refused to participate. It seemed very Nazi-like to me. Burning books and all that. Not theoretically, just physically. My feelings were similar to when I think about how the SPCA kills the animals they can't find homes for. I just want to save them all and give them a home.
 
ions said:
I had thought of the cost of shipping and I bet you're right. It's not a good enough justification for this practice, but I bet you're right. I wonder if all costs to strip covering have been considered. I bet not. Is the labour to do the strip covering considered? It does take time to strip covers off a pile of books. They're still being handled the same amount as if they were to be shipped and then the handling of the covers for shipping. I would also hazard a guess that the majority of companies invlolved in strip covering also have decent courier accounts. Both the stores and the publishers/distributers. Not even considering the labour to handle the additional waste/recycling. So bottomline, both metaphorically and fiscally, the environment is being pissed on and books are being wasted to possibly save a few bucks. If publishers and stores were even a little bit wiser about how many copies to run and carry this wouldn't be nearly as large of a problem as it is.

How is strip covering better than a smaller credit sent from the publisher and a price reduction to clear them out?
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I would imagine it's way past the price reduction stage when the books are destroyed. I would also imagine that the market has be saturated, so few would want the book anyway. Plus, it only takes a few minutes for a person to rip the covers off a pile of books and toss them. That's probably costs a lot less then shipping them back, or retaining them. Keep in mind that they're generally trying to make room for books that will sell.
 
Robert said:
I would imagine it's way past the price reduction stage when the books are destroyed. I would also imagine that the market has be saturated, so few would want the book anyway. Plus, it only takes a few minutes for a person to rip the covers off a pile of books and toss them. That's probably costs a lot less then shipping them back, or retaining them. Keep in mind that they're generally trying to make room for books that will sell.
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Working at a book store having done strip covers and shipping myself I can tell you the labour to handle them whether shipped or strip covered is the same. Less even for shipping alone.

Procedures for Strip covering once books have been pulled from shelf:

1. Rip cover off book. Usually very easy but the higher quality books are bound a little better so can be tougher to tear the cover off without damaging the UPC which is the purpose of the strip cover.

2. Toss book in Recycle bin.

3. Package strip covers together for shipment for credit in a small box or envelope.

4. Attach packing slip.

5. Technically strip covers are to be destroyed - ripped in two or shredded before they are disposed of. This does not appear to happen consistently.

6. Dispose of stripped books in recycling(hopefully) or trash bin.

Procedure for returning books that are not strip covered once they have been pulled from shelves:

1. Place books in box.

2. Tape box.

3. Attach Packing slip.

4. Ship box.

In terms of pure peon labour packing the books for shipping is marginally easier and faster.

As for the market being saturated with these books I'm not so sure. The irony is the chain I work for has a donation program for schools in need of books. Our pitch is that there are many schools across the country that have no books or very few in their libraries. Certainly not enough in the classrooms. At the front of the store we're asking customers to donate money to buy books for schools while in the back we rip the covers off and throw the books in the garbage. And like I said above, there has been Shakespeare, Dickens, Tolstoy, Clavell & Rand just off the top of my head. Stuff I know a highschool could use.
 
I believe you're way off on the cost data, but there is no denying that there are better things to do with books then destroying them. I imagine the agreement between the publisher and the book seller has something to do with the disposition of the books.
 
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