The Future of Bookstores
The book industry is going through changes, influenced by trends like the transition from print to digital. And it looks like no part of this industry is being influenced like bookstores. From independent bookstores and used bookstores to big bookstores - no one seem to be immune to these changes.
We are very interested in these changes as they also have a green side - bookstores are an important part of the book industry and the way bookstores will be operating in the future can play an important role in the efforts to make the industry more sustainable.
Therefore we follow the discussions on how will bookstores look like in the future very closely, and we would like to share with you some of the most interesting articles, posts, updates and news we find on this issue. We hope you will find these resources useful!
You can also check our other resource pages: The Future of Publishing, The future of Magazines, Green Printing and e-Books vs. Physical Books.
Some Doubts About the Future of Independent Bookstores -
Matthew C. Nisbet, Age of Engangement, August 22, 2010
In general, I think the fate of indie book stores mirrors that of their brick-and-mortar brethren: the main culprit behind the decline of market share of all stores that sell printed books--chain and indie alike--is technology.
The future of bookstores - business as unusual, local solutions and positioning for success - Raz Godelnik, Eco-Libris blog, August 18, 2010
Three articles I read in the last couple of days reflected three different perspectives on the present situation and the future of Independent bookstores.
Get ready for the bookstore massacre - Brett Arends' ROI, MarketWatch, August 17, 2010
As for the book industry: About 125,000 people still work in book stores and news dealers, according to Labor. How many of them will still have jobs in two years? Another 75,000 work in book publishing. When writers self-publish in electronic format, how many publishers will still be left?
Where will bookstores be five years from now? - Mike Shatzkin, The Shatzkin Files, July 11, 2010
Today, if the stores' share is 80% of print and we assume print is 90% of total book sales (using Centrello's 10% number as a baseline in an attempt to be more conservative for this particular calculation), then we're talking about a brick-and-mortar decline from 72% of the market today to 25% in 5 years!
Stores See Google as Ally in E-Book Market - Brad Stone, New York Times, June 29, 2010
Google may soon become the primary source of e-books on the Web sites of hundreds of independent booksellers.
The Hub: business model of the future for books and libraries? - TeleRead: Bring the E-Books Home, June 25, 2010
I am a huge fan of the book store, the library and all things book-related. The library has narrowly edged out the bookstore as my favourite air-conditioned hang-out (I do not have air conditioning) because of the free wifi. But is that enough? Can the bookstores and libraries of this world stay viable and relevant in this age of e-downloads?
Can monetary incentives + local benefits generate a brighter future for independent bookstores? - Eco-Libris Blog, June 4, 2010
What is the best business model that will generate a brighter future for independent bookstores? How about a new approach that will provide customers with both personal benefits and the feeling that they're contributing to the prosperity of their own community.
2010 Survey of Book Buying Behavior - Verso Digital (for ABA), May 27, 2010
The survey, conducted and analyzed between ABA's fifth Winter Institute and BEA 2010, is the most up-to-date consumer book-buying information available and includes consumer demographics and book-buying preferences.
Is there a future for Barnes & Noble and Borders bookstores? Is it a green one? - Eco-Libris blog, May 24, 2010
On this article we ask if book chains' brick and mortar bookstores can succeed in the digital age of eBooks and growing online purchases? And how will their new business model look like? We think the current ideas for reinventing the business model of book chains are most likely insufficient and won't work. We argue that taking the "green" path is B&N and Borders best shot for success.
Back to the Future - Tim Middleton, BNC Blog, May 20, 2010
The other night I went to a panel discussion billed as the Future of the Bookstore and I have been trying to collect my thoughts about it ever since but not sure I have yet. Predicting the future is a tough business and maybe not a fruitful one unless you're Ray Kurzweil or an investment banker.
Bookstore of the future - Samanhta Mary, The Sylph and the Sail, May 18, 2010
Now, I know the title may sound a little Jetsony or Matrixy, but hear me out on this: what will the bookstore of the future look like in this quickly changing book model? Will physical books be there at all, or will we be browsing book covers like we browse empty DVD containers? Will there be a bar type area where you bring your eReader and purchase digital books to upload them on the spot? Universities Scared That iPad Sales Will Bankrupt School Bookstores - iBlog2, May 17, 2010
If students embrace textbooks on the iPad, college bookstores may lose their shirts.
It may be the season for graduation parties and commencement speeches, but colleges and universities are already prepping for next year, even in the bookstore. Next fall, during opening weekend, students will once again file into university bookstores to purchase course materials, school supplies, and a college sweatshirt or two.
The bookstore in a future full of iPads - iPad Watcher, April 12, 2010
I love reading books and I love shopping for them. Okay, let me rephrase that. I love browsing through a bookstore, but I rarely buy a paper book these days, always preferring the digital version if one is available. This duality of feelings and the certainty of the inevitable demise of the paper book in the future makes me a bit sad each time I go to a good bookstore.
The Future of Bookstores - DAVID DERRICO, April 2, 2010
So, we've already established that e-books are taking over the world (yes, I use the term “established” somewhat loosely). What does this mean for bookstores? Well, first of all, the smart bookstores are hedging their bets.
The endangered bookstore: Edited out -The Economist, March 31, 2010
THESE are not easy times for booksellers. Borders, a big American one, ditched its boss in January and has closed stores, but is still at risk of collapse, some analysts say. The British chain of the same name, which it once owned, failed last year. Barnes & Noble, the world's biggest bookseller, appointed a new boss last month to help it confront the triple threat of the recession, increased competition and e-books.
Future of Indie Bookstores: Some Ideas - by grrlbibliophile ,Grrlbibliophile's Blog, March 30, 2010
I took a Bookselling class at PSU where we learned a lot about the history and traditions of selling books, but these methods aren't cutting it any more. Patrons don't just walk into bookstores and buy the books that catch their eye – they often find books they want and then go home and order them online from cheaper sellers.
Bookstores try to read future: Battered by prolonged recession, local booksellers use variety of strategies to keep their doors open - by Cami Joner ,The Columbian, March 28, 2010
Many booksellers also sense additional threats looming from new hand-held technology, such as the Nook from Barnes & Noble; Amazon's Kindle; Sony's Reader and Apple's iPad, set to debut April 3. The devices could affect the next generation of customers, said Steve Tommerup, owner of Literary Leftovers in Battle Ground.
What Will Bookstores Look Like in 10 Years? - by Jason Boog, mediabistro: GalleyCat, March 25, 2010
What will the bookstore look like in 10 years? In 1999, one writer came up with a vision that is close to our print-on-demand fantasies. In Robert J. Sawyer 's science fiction novel, FlashForward , everyone on earth received a brief glimpse of the future--including a peek into the future of bookstores. The novel has been adapted into an ABC television show that airs tonight.
Bookstore giant comes under siege -
By Andrea Chang, The Salt Lake Tribune, March 20, 2010
The story line for bookstore giant Barnes & Noble Inc. is growing ever more dramatic, with falling store sales, increasingly stiff competition and a fierce battle over the company's shares led by a billionaire Los Angeles investor.
Are eBook Readers the death of bookstores? - By Tim Martin, News Blaze, March 19, 2010
I used to love going to my local Borders and browsing books. I do not have a Barnes and Nobles in my town, so when I would travel and find one, I would spend a few hours in 1. But now that I have the Kindle App on my iPhone and my computer at home and at work, I rarely visit a bookstore.
The Boulder way: A bookstore's experiment with microdistribution - by Megan Garber, Neiman Journalism Lab, March 16, 2010
The “Recommended” section at the Boulder Book Store, an independent bookseller in Colorado, features a mix of titles and genres. And also: a mix of distribution models. Among the traditionally published works on display stand a smattering of print-on-demand titles — many of them being sold on consignment by authors from the Boulder area. They've paid for the privilege. The store charges its consignment authors according to a tiered fee structure.
The Death of Books and Bookstores -by Michael Dyer, Design Assembly, March 16, 2010
In the summer of 2007, after over a half century in existence, Franz Bader bookstore in Washington DC closed. I had spent many hours in this specialty shop which focused on art, architecture, and design books; first as a student in the mid 1990s, later as a practicing local designer and, finally, as a visitor after moving to New York.
The bookstore of the future? - by Robert Paterson, Robert Paterson's Weblog, March 14, 2010
David points us to the Montague Bookmill. This is the bookstore of the future, because it's not a business trying to maximize growth and ROI. No, it's a place, an attitude, an approach to an afternoon. They don't sell every book, they don't even pretend to.
The Death of Book Stores? - by Shawn Anthony, Lo-Fi Tribe, March 14, 2010
Will ereading devices like the Kindle and Nook kill bookstores as we presently know them? It's an interesting question, is it not? It's completely possible too. I am a serious aficionado of books, but my last two major relocation projects have softened my once staunch stance against the idea of electronic books. A future for independent bookstores – A. Bitterman speaks - by Bill Harley, Song, Story and Culture, March 8, 2010
Between 1993 and 2003, the number of independent book retailers diminished by more than half, and their consumer market share dwindled from 30+% to less than 10%. The downward trend continues, albeit more slowly, accompanied by the sound of fingernails dragging across loose rock. But there is hope on the horizon for the independent bookseller, and it comes in a strange and perhaps unexpected form – the e-book.
The future of bookstores is the... - by John Dupuis, Confessions of a Science Librarian, November 30, 2009
...present of public and academic libraries? What got me thinking along these lines most recently was the recent Clay Shirky blog post, Local Bookstores, Social Hubs, and Mutualization. It's a pretty good post that puts a particular kind of physical retail into the context of current online retail and media shift realities.
Reading Local Essay: Indie Bookstores of the Future - by Gabe Barber, Reading Local: Portland, July 9, 2009
The indie bookstore of the future will do a lot more than sell books. An easy way to describe them (for Portlanders anyhow) is to use current locations as reference points. So think of them as a mix of the small press/local focus of Reading Frenzy, the community living room feel of any of Portland's fine coffee houses, the services offered by the IPRC, and the events held at Disjecta.
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