Calendars for 2012 started to be sold in Hanoi in early 2011. Many streets have been covered in red as sellers try to catch the attention of buyers. This year, buyers feel more secured when they are informed that bloc calendars are stuck digital anti-counterfeit stamps issued by the Authority of Publication.
This year, calendars come in more styles, shapes and materials, not just rectangular styles. Specially, calendars are even printed on silk and do paper (a type of traditional paper, currently rarely used) - the materials tourists and overseas Vietnamese people are very keen on.
More styles and prices
As regards contents, the daybooks are most commonly printed with landscapes, seasons, proverbs, sayings of well-known leaders around the world. Besides, this year also has theme-based calendars like history, politics, culture and arts. For example, “Vietnamese History” calendars display information related to the day in history. There are also calendars about traditional Dong Ho paintings (used do paper) or Vietnamese festivals and rituals.
In recent years, the quality of calendars is improved thanks to the presence of private publishers, not only State-owned entities as earlier. Calendar publishers have to improve the paper quality, designs, styles and other attributes to attract buyers. A calendar trader in Cau Giay district, Hanoi said: “I needed only three shelves to display all types of calendars last year but we needed more shelves this year.”
With a variety of categories, selling prices are also much higher than previous years. Mr Mai Thanh Hai, an official at Vietnam Book Company, said: Calendar prices increase 15 - 20 percent this year. Big-size Dai Nam calendars are sold at VND345,000 each; big-sized An Hao calendars are retailed at VND360,000; big-sized calendars published by Culture Publishing House are sold at VND280,000, etc. Basic calendars are sold at just VND15,000 but they are not common in cities but in far-lying regions.
A calendar trader in Tay Son Street (Hanoi) said the rise in calendar prices is resulted from higher costs for paper, petroleum, transportation, electricity and other factors. However, this does not surprise buyers because prices of most commodities have leaped this year. Anyway, higher prices cause a slight decline in sales.
Digital anti-counterfeit stamps
This year, the Authority of Publication used digitalised stamps for bloc calendars (one-piece-a-day calendar). This aims to prevent illegitimate publication, circulation and trade in calendars. This helps prevent illegal calendar publication and protect legitimate rights of consumers.
An official from the Vietnam Book Company said this stamp not only helps consumers buy genuine products but also helps producers protect their brand names and copyrights.
The stamp is commonly stuck on the top right corner of the calendar, said the representative. With instructions, buyers can easily identify the good from the bad when they want to buy as a New Year gift. In case problems are found with the stamp, they can report to the Authority of Publication for examination and investigation.
Mr Nguyen Kiem, Chairman of the Vietnam Publishers Association, said: Applying IT to stamps enables buyers to check the genuineness of products without having to compare with other products. DAC solutions are used for calendar stamps, he said.
Nguyen Thanh
Vietnamese
