ABSTRACT
Professional attitudes regarding the commercial imperative are an integral part of the debate about the true purpose of the public library and the services it provides. The profession has been advised that in today's society, where people tend to be cash rich and time poor, the survival of the library service depends on its ability to compete with organisations in other market sectors, such as retail, leisure and hospitality. Although the suggestion that libraries should adopt a more commercial approach, and focus on customer satisfaction, may have a superficial appeal, the experiences of those in related fields should give considerable cause for concern. The idea of applying retail principles to public libraries is now widely canvassed in different parts of the world. A further commercial inroad was made a little while ago in the United Kingdom when it was suggested that public libraries could be combined with supermarkets.
