Bookstore manager details experience with Espresso book machine

In a presentation at BookExpo America, Chris Morrow, manager of Northshire Bookstore, Manchester Center, Vt., detailed a mostly positive experience with the Espresso Book Machine
The machine, made by On Demand Books, boosted foot traffic at the store, Morrow said, but cautioned that the print on demand machine takes at least 15 minutes from the time a customer request is processed until the sale is registered.
Morrow said the machine was fairly easy to use, attracted customers, boosted community relations and vastly improved the customer experience. "From a customer point of view it has been a big success," he said. Customers congregated to watch books being made.
The only independent bookseller in the U.S. to have an Espresso machine, Morrow estimates that Northshire sells 150-200 POD titles per week, most of them self-published books by local authors, and said his bookstore is known throughout the state now, thanks to the machine that the store nicknamed Lurch, "because it's big and clunky."
On the downside, Morrow said the machine takes up a lot of space at the front of his store and "broke down too much for my comfort level."
On Demand Books believes it has resolved the two problems Morrow encountered with its new Espresso 2.0 model, which was unveiled in April at the London Book Fair.
The machine requires one dedicated staff person who must be trained on the equipment.
Morrow outlined three categories of use for POD's direct-to-consumer capabilities: self-publishing; accessing public domain books, including out-of-print and hard-to-find titles; and instant sale of copyright titles available through Ingram's Lightning Source.
He expressed frustration with the limited availability of copyrighted titles, which he attributed in part to "a bit of disconnect" on the part of publishers. If, as usually happens, e-books are released on publication date, POD format should be simultaneously available, he said. Morrow also suggested On Demand Books’ software needs to be improved, especially its ability to integrate with retailers' inventory control systems.
The popularity of Northshire's POD self-publishing capabilities led the store to establish the Shire Press, which offers a full menu of services from editing to layout and cover design - and even provides ISBNs. The business has a gross margin profit of 60-80 percent for the finished product. About 10 percent of his POD revenue is realized through publishing services, Morrow said.