Head to Big Bad Wolf before the clock strikes 12
Enthusiastic young readers loading their carts. Pic by Indika Handuwala
Big Bad Wolf Brand Manager Myra Chua and Junior Brand Executive Izabella Tamara have seen it all before – pyjama clad children accompanying parents to their book sale in the Philippines, Indonesia and back home in Kuala Lumpur. It re-instates their goal with the sale now in its last packed day in Colombo- to encourage the habit of reading and make it a ritual and tradition for young people and children especially.
With the mundane pleasures of life experienced increasingly on screen, the all-consuming blare of headsets and headphones or the familiar voice of Siri, it isn’t pessimism to think that the traditional paperback will soon be a relic of the past. But over the past 11 days, the much-anticipated Big Bad Wolf Sale making a return to the island after last year’s overwhelming response, has championed the cause of the paperback.
The heavily discounted (discounts up to 80%) book sale wraps up its whirlwind 12-days in Colombo at exactly 11.59 p.m. tonight. Over the last 11 days, the SLECC has had the energy of a chocolate factory opening its gates to hordes of eager children, sans a golden ticket. For the well- oiled machine that makes up the many young volunteers in their BBW signature aprons or the management that operates quietly at the very heart of the sale, the picture of happy customers lugging away bags of books is the satisfaction that drives them.
The book sale became a hit since its introduction in Malaysia back in 2009, defying even the founders’ trepidation over the popularity of the conventional book. “Books are expensive,” Myra and Izabella add; their sales have targeted developing countries where English is hardly ever the primary language.
As they browse around the constantly packed hall, Myra and Izabella never cease to be amazed by the impact books still have on people. “We have people who have travelled almost 200 km to buy books,” they divulge. This is Myra’s first sale in Sri Lanka since taking up duties with Big Bad Wolf last November and she notes happily that one of the biggest differences is “the amount of parents that have come for the sale this year” as they assist a harried father trying to get through handwritten lists of specific books which parents constantly request. Dramatic as it sounds, it isn’t hard to believe, as shoppers exhausted but content stroll out of the hall with shopping carts full of books.
The event hopes to reach out to local publishers in their next instalment. “It’s our job to connect people,” they say–from the diverse hordes of shoppers to the 400 enthusiastic volunteers who never fail to offer help with smile even after endlessly restacking the same lot of books and local publishers in the future. Armed with a genuine sense of purpose and true love for reading, the Big Bad Wolf can pat itself on the back for helping hard covers and the comforting smell of print live another day.
The Big Bad Wolf Sale ends today at 11.59 p.m at the Sri Lanka Exhibition and Convention Centre in Fort.