Vítor Túlio, the shop’s owner, explained to Lusa News Agency that of the 180 customers who asked after the magazine, he was only able to help 20.
“I actually had more copies [than usual] since I usually receive just two, but this time I had 180 people interested and I’m only going to be able to sell it to the first 20 who ordered it,” Túlio said.
António Carvalho, a designer by profession, is a regular Sunrise client and was fortunate enough to be one of the first 20 to reserve the post-attack edition.
“Normally I don’t buy it, but I knew the publication in question and wanted to have this special edition,” he said.
International News Portugal (INP), the company that imports Charlie Hebdo into Portugal, said 500 copies arrived in the country on Friday. It received various requests to increase the number of points of sale, which it was not able to meet.
“We’ve already asked our international partner for more copies of this edition, but at this moment, it’s not possible to announce the day it will arrive in Portugal,” a company official said.
The special edition sold out in France on Wednesday, with long queues appearing at kiosks around the country.
Charlie Hebdo had initially said that the special issue would have a print run of one million, but they ended up increasing that to three million. Previous editions numbered 60,000 copies.
The special edition, put together by survivors of last week’s attack, has on its cover a cartoon of Mohammed with a tear in his eye, holding a piece of paper with the phrase ‘Je suis Charlie’, of the kind used by millions of people who demonstrated in defence of freedom of expression. Above it is the phrase, ‘All is forgiven’.