With respect, that is not correct. DB is a niche publication aimed at a particular market so their is no reason why large chains would stock physical copies. Appreciation of this fact is reflected in the discount we offered to retailers through our distributor (which was agreed with the author as part of the marketing plan, however, I'm not going to discuss in public what it was). We have sold to independents.
As a publisher I invest in the cover design, editing, galleys for review, marketing and publicity. The author is offered a royalty. I (like any decent publisher) do not expect them to contribute financially to the production or sale of the book in any way, shape or form. (I really hope I've made that bit clear now!!)
Therefore, if it only means I publish three titles a year I have to be selective because, while the author makes money off the first sale, I have to make back the money I invest in the book. I also have to work very hard to promote it. For example, Dunge Bottom is about hang gliding. To date we have contacted groups worldwide representing over 20,000 people involved in the sport and informed them about the book. A week ago DB was ranked 17000 in Amazon.co.uk which is not bad for a biography of someone no one has heard of, writing about his experiences in a very niche sport. It is a reflection of our efforts that it is selling well and as publisher I will make a small profit. The author will do much better and I believe this is a good thing. If we had a book that we believed would sell in large chain stores we would arrange discount/distribution with this aim.
I apologise if I am sounding a bit defensive. It is easy for people to be critical in forums and not easy to defend yourself. Like any new business we have had a few problems in starting up but whether I succeed or fail I am doing this for the pleasure of doing it. If I wanted to get rich I wouldn't have chosen the book trade.