CCBF celebrates 10th anniversary with 478 exhibitors

A "bustling" China Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair (CCBF) celebrated its 10th anniversary with 478 exhibitors this year. 

The fair returned to its pre-pandemic location, the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition & Convention Centre, from 17th to 19th November. Over 30,000 new titles were presented during the show, while the fair encompassed 329 events organised by exhibitors. 

Over three days, 42,733 people visited the fair, with 19,086 professional visitors attending. UK publishers who were at the fair said that the atmosphere was buzzy and that publishers had fully returned this year following the lengthy disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

"I was a first-time attendee, and impressed by the buzz of the fair, from busy stands to the live-streaming influencers seemingly round every corner," said Suzanne Carnell, publisher of Two Hoots at Macmillan Children’s Books. "Much of the overseas contingent were back for the first time since the pandemic, and everyone seemed to agree that the fair itself was back."

Carnell was a judge for the 2023 Golden Pinwheel Young Illustrators Competition, which introduced a new commercial category alongside the existing Book Publishing awards this year. "I was impressed by the talent among the new young Chinese illustrators showing their work," she said. 

International business development director Susannah Palfrey attended the fair from Hachette Children’s Group (HCG), alongside senior rights manager Michael Hussain. “The 2023 Shanghai Book Fair was busy, bustling and extremely positive for HCG, building on bumper development in 2021 and 2022 – the latter with 100% growth," Palfrey commented. 

"We had over 30 scheduled appointments and many other on-the-spot conversations with Chinese publishers who were particularly interested in our non-fiction and educational titles, as well as those on emotional literacy, but we also had productive conversations about titles from all genres," she added. Palfrey explained that HCG talked about existing partnerships and pitched new titles at the fair, adding that China is one of the publisher’s most significant markets. 

Indies including Bloomsbury, Nosy Crow and Sweet Cherry publishing were also in attendance, while for other publishers like Chicken House said the fair was not in the budget this year. “Bloomsbury’s local team attended CCBF this year," said a spokesperson from the publisher. "They were excited to be present at the fair and see so many new Chinese and foreign books on display, along with a diverse range of events and conferences," they added. "It was rewarding to be back to face-to-face conversations with our customers and peers. The mood felt buoyant and the attendance numbers were very positive.”

The nation’s children’s reading level has improved "significantly", according to the fair’s organisers, who noted an increase in "international recognition" for Chinese children’s publishing. They added that there has been a shift in the growth trajectory "from positive to negative" this year, explaining that "while children’s books hold the largest market share, growth rates lag behind the market average". In a release, CCBF said that the "market is evolving from incremental to stock", adding that publishers are urged to "focus on content creation and on expanding distribution". 

Over a hundred copyright exchange meetings were held at the 2023 fair, and the organisers said that a "strategic co-operation agreement" has been signed with the Shanghai Children’s Book Fair to "enhance copyright exchange with China".