Today we’re talking about one of the simplest, but most crucial, lessons: the importance of being nice. While many imagine the rare book dealer as an unhelpful curmudgeon, Ken believes that, not only is it nice to be nice, it’s also good for business. We’ll talk about times when the shop’s friendliness paid off, inadvertently building relationships with mayors, newspaper editors, and the New England mafia—as well as doormen, secretaries, and restaurant staff. Settle in and get comfortable with this convivial new #brattlecast.
Brattlecast #130 - Edward Bernays, Father of PR (audio fixed)
On this week’s episode we’re talking about friend of the shop Edward Bernays. Known as “the father of public relations,” Bernays had an enormous influence on the way that products—and politics—are marketed to the American public. In the 1920’s he put a spin on Lucky Strike cigarettes as ‘Torches of Freedom’ (then worked on anti-smoking campaigns in the 1970’s) and he helped sell the idea that a modestly left-leaning Central American government was a communist menace in our own backyard. More importantly for our purposes, during the post-war housing boom he persuaded builders to include bookshelves in new homes, in a clever effort to sell more books. Learn more about Bernays, including how he met Ken, on today’s #brattlecast.
Brattlecast #129 - Handling Adversity
At an event to mark the release of Jordan’s new book (On Air: My Fifty-Year Love Affair with Radio), fellow author and CEO Victoria Bondoc gave a thought-provoking talk on overcoming adversity. Ken has learned some lessons about resilience from having his family’s only slightly insured bookshop burn down one cold February morning, destroying all the books inside and creating a plume of smoke so large that his friend could see it from a passing airplane. Fortunately, you don’t have to wait for your own bookshop to catch fire, but instead can hear what the experience taught Ken about the importance of community, keeping busy, and making tough decisions on this week’s #brattlecast.
Brattlecast #98 - Buy the Book
It’s something that many of us have a bit more time for these days: buying books online (and, ideally, reading them). In this episode we’ll look into some of the quirks and peculiarities that shoppers might encounter on the internet, like books that are priced way too high, or the same book being sold in a really wild range of prices (do I want the $6 copy, or the $2000 copy?). It turns out that usually the culprit behind these discrepancies is a confused computer algorithm, rather than an ambitious human bookseller. We’ll also reveal some book buying tips and tricks, plus the Brattle’s famous haggling secret (“ask nicely”).
Brattlecast # 56 - Let's Make a Deal!
On this episode Ken talks about haggling: are his shop’s prices flexible? Yes! Should you ask for a lower price on the book you're thinking of buying? Sometimes! What's the secret to talking your way into a great bargain? Be subtle, be nice, and, ideally, be a child whose early love of reading will later catapult you to the heights of success in a literary field. Plus, why Ken might pay you more for your books if you live on the first floor.
