Almost 200 thousand followers on Tik Tok and videos that come to 3 million views. This is the story of Luca Cena39 years old, Turin dealer of old books in his White Lands Rare Books, in via Andrea Doria in Turin, in the heart of a city of booksellers, who has become an influencer of ancient books. His story begins at July 2023 when he publishes his first video.
On Tik Tok he talks about very rare books, some are 400 years old. He also shows his followers the negotiations to purchase an old text. An example? An 1860 book on botany can cost up to 3 thousand euros.
How did the idea of telling your books on TikTok come about?
«I started in July 2023, not even a year ago, and I tried to respond to a need which was to update my profession. The antiquarian bookshop has existed for 400 years but has never evolved. So I asked myself what I could do. Social media and Tik Tok turned out to be formidable tools and so I started talking about the objects that surround me every day. The feedback was positive, I think people understood my love for the book. I love the book in general, it’s an almost perfect tool. The book allows us to find that time for ourselves in a period in which society always asks us to run.
Are Tik Tok videos a part of your business?
No, they are a predominant part of my time and my working day. However, I do a work of dissemination rather than promotion of my business. There is not a commercial proposal in the videos but a cultural proposal.
What numbers are they?
The videos that fared best have reached almost 3 million views, it’s almost impressive but it’s an effective tool. The feedback is real: if there are many people who look at them it means that the value can be for many.
Is there a method for doing visualizations? Tell an older book? More famous?
I don’t think there is the right time to post, I think there must be some value in the video. There is another important point: books must contain a direct reference to everyone’s life. The more it happens, the more feedback there is. If I talk about a book by an unknown author, who doesn’t have that particular interest, the video goes badly. However, if I am the first to find a curious topic, fascinating news and manage to convey the love of the moment I find that thing, the video goes.
How do you organize yourself? How many videos do you make per week?
I go out 4 times, I need to organize myself because my job is that of a bookseller anyway.
Do you record them one at a time or all together and then publish them gradually?
I record 2-3 together. Other times, however, when I find a book I like I put two lights on and record immediately.
Negotiation videos? Are they real?
When an owner comes in wanting an appraisal, I explain the value of the book to him and then ask him to repeat the same thing in the next room in front of the camera. With some, however, it happened to shoot straight away because they know me and ask me to record straight away.
The followers? Do they write to you?
I have a direct relationship with them: I am contacted because anyone who finds a book at home is curious to know if it is worth something. There are also many who write to me to ask me what path I took to do this profession and therefore what to do to start. I reply that there is no academic path to do this job, the path is that of experience, one book after another you see so many that you understand which one has the most value.
How the value of books works: the older they are, the more valgon?
No, that would be too easy. There are a number of criteria: the fact that it is very old can certainly determine a greater value. There are, however, books from the 1900s, for example, which are worth more than those from the 16th century.
Where do the books featured in your videos come from?
There are two sources of supply: the private individual who has books at home and the public channels such as markets, auctions and colleagues. My main target, however, is the private individual who turns to me to understand what he has at home, what it is and how much it is worth.
