More independent bookshops opened than closed in France last year, "but the sector's three-year buoyancy post-Covid-19 continues to lose steam," the Bookseller reported. According to the National Book Centre (Centre National du Livre), 129 outlets opened in France and 72 closed in 2024, while 60 were taken over. New store openings averaged 150 a year between 2021 and 2023, and totaled 687 in 2021-24, about twice the level of 2017-2020. The net gain of 57 shops last year was well below the annual average of 108 for the previous three years.
Of the closures in 2024, 40% were outlets that had opened since 2017 and 7% were takeovers. This followed a stable period for closures between 2017 and 2022, when 30 to 40 stores shut down. But that changed with an increase to 60 in 2023. Factors behind the downturn include rising overheads and online sales of new and secondhand books, according to the CNL.
Bookshops featuring a tea or coffee area doubled in number for both general and specialist shops during the past two years, accounting for 32 of all new bookshops in 2024.
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The European & international Booksellers Federation has released the official aftermovie of the 2025 RISE Bookselling Conference, which was held March 23-24 in Riga, Latvia.
"This year's event marked a significant expansion, with delegates from an increasing number of countries attending the conference," EIBF's Newsflash reported. "Over 300 booksellers from 31 countries gathered in Latvia, connecting with peers from all over the world and enjoying two days of panel discussions, workshops, presentations, and keynote speeches.
In addition to the aftermovie, additional materials from the conference--photographs, speakers' presentations, and interviews--will be available on the RISE website in the coming days.
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A recent study by the German book industry association (Börsenverein) and the German Association of Young Adult Book Publishers (avj), conducted by GfK, explored the reading and buying habits of young people by surveying readers 10-29 years old and parents 30-plus with children interested in books, EIBF's Newsflash reported.
Among the highlights from the survey: bookshops are the leading source for discovering new titles across all age groups (between 52% and 62%); print remains the preferred format (97%) for 10- to 19-year-olds and for 96% of 20- to 29-year-olds; and 97% of parents choose printed books for their children. The study, written in both German and English, is available here. --Robert Gray