PHOTO: Paul Gilbert, Independent Publisher and Bookseller since 1994

All good things must come to an end. After more than 26 years as an independent publisher I have decided to retire. My publishing business officially closed on 31st December 2020. My decision was not an easy one, but one which I have been considering for some time now. While I had hoped to continue publishing for a few more years, circumstances beyond my control have forced me to do otherwise.

In anticipation of my retirement and plans to move back to England, I began downsizing my business back in 2016, when I turned 60. I stopped selling other publishers books, I ceased publishing books by new authors, I stopped importing books in bulk from Russia, then I closed down my Royal Russia web site, and focused on publications on the life and reign of Emperor Nicholas II. 

These measures, saw my annual sales slowly decrease, however, shrinking book sales during the last few years have resulted in my business operating in the red. Amazon had a huge impact on my sales (their discounting book prices and free shipping have helped put many independent booksellers out of business). Annual parcel rate increases by Canada Post (the most expensive in the world) to the United States and overseas have had a huge detrimental impact on book sales. The final nail, however, was the COVID-19 pandemic which further affected declining sales.

I regret to announce that the books and periodicals which I had planned to publish this year have been cancelled. This includes ALL future issues of ROYAL RUSSIA (No. 15 was the last issue published) or SOVEREIGN (No. 11 was the last issue published). The articles planned for publication in SOVEREIGN will instead be published on my blog NICHOLAS II. EMPEROR. TSAR. SAINT.

My ONLINE BOOKSHOP will remain open until all remaining stock has been sold. It is at this time that my bookshop will close permanently. 

I will dedicate my retirement to researching and writing articles for my Nicholas II blog, of which the number of views increased by nearly 100 percent over the previous year: 137,235 in 2020 compared to 70,429 in 2019. It is my blog that I will now devote my time and resources, because it is through this particular venue that I can reach a wider and growing readership. 

I will also continue to update my FACEBOOK page daily with news, photos and videos about Nicholas II, and the history of the Romanov dynasty and Imperial Russia. I have plans to offer lectures, conferences and other events dedicated to the life and reign of Russia’s last emperor and tsar.

I am very proud of what I accomplished over the last 26+ years. I published more than 100 titles, including new books; first English translations; reprints of Russian Royal classics in both hard cover and paperback editions, periodicals and calendars.

A heartfelt THANK YOU to each and every one of you who bought my books over the years, your patronage has been very much appreciated..

I believe that I am making the right decision and look forward to sharing my research with all of you for many more years to come. I pray that God will grant me many more years.

© Paul Gilbert. 3 January 2021