In 2020, the coronavirus-related confinements deprived many people who were alone or necessarily isolated from the sound of another human voice. It was during this period that the audiobook saw its sales increase in Greece. Then 20-year-old Alexis Tzambris, an economics student at the University of Macedonia, turned an idea born shortly after graduating from high school into reality. He then created the first audio book platform in Greek, entitled Auvril.
” After graduating from high school, I worked for a time in my father’s company, in the field of hygiene services. That’s when I decided I wanted to do something on my own “, he confides to the APE-MPE, local press agency.
” The man who is now Auvril’s business adviser then said to me: “If you want to start a business of your own, first read books on entrepreneurship.” But it took me a month to finish a 300-page book. I then looked for another way and I discovered audio books in English. I listened to three or four a week and soon realized there was nothing like it in the Greek language. “, he continues.
Learn differently
” So, I thought that I could bring my stone to the building for another education. This was prompted by a peer of mine who, because he had difficulty reading in the traditional way, thought he couldn’t study at university. It seemed unfair to me that, because a different way of teaching has not been found, this predestines a person to a life below his real abilities. “, develops the student.
It is in these circumstances and following these reflections that on July 22, 2020, the Auvril platform was born. It started with educational books for high school and has since expanded to a much wider range of non-fiction titles dealing with subjects such as economics, marketing, personal development and spirituality. There are also summaries of the books for quick learning needs.
While industry professionals such as actors and journalists lend their voices to some 200 books available in the library, 300 amateur storytellers are also on hand. These were selected through a quiz and a five-minute vocal demonstration. The recordings take place in the two studios of the platform in Thessaloniki and Kozani, but also at a partner, in Athens.
A women’s market
” Compared to other countries, Greece has very limited commuting. While overseas, audiobooks have grown in popularity as many people listen to them on the way to and from work », Analyzes the young student.
” From 2020-2021, the use of audiobooks started to increase in Greece, today listeners listen to them while exercising or driving, but also when cooking or drinking coffee. For some, it has even become a daily habit and not a way of filling up lost hours. »
He deciphers: The audience is mainly made up of people between 35 and 55 years old, and recently, during and following the pandemic, younger people, between 25 and 35 years old. In Greece, the majority are women (60% of listeners) while worldwide the ratio is 50-50 for both sexes. Most of them are higher education graduates, have a job and want to learn more about it and/or improve their skills. »
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” In addition, approximately two in ten platform users are visually impaired. There are organizations for the visually impaired that have large libraries of audiobooks, but these aren’t updated often, so there aren’t many new titles. “, he concludes.
The pandemic had a very positive effect on the demand for audiobooks and in particular during the first confinement. People, tired of spending too much time on screens, but also making the decision to invest in their education and personal development, have turned to audio.
As a result, explains Alexis, he noted a 50% increase in Auvril’s turnover between December 2020 and February 2021. The second confinement will not have had such convincing results: however, the platform now offers a subscription service. Two weeks after its implementation, the latter will have attracted 250 annual subscribers and 50 monthly subscribers out of some 2,000 users.
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