Bookstores Are Back!!

 

As I sit in my local Barnes & Noble at the café counter, I am reading about how bookstore sales have bounced back to pre-pandemic levels. This is great news!  

Our bookstores are really the lifeblood of the book industry. Bookstores serve many functions, including:  

·         Holding book signings for authors.

·         Showcasing books (even if they get bought online).

·         Providing a sense of community to readers.

·         Inspire browsing and point-of-purchase book buys.  

I am at the counter today because the dining room is at capacity. There is energy and excitement buzzing through the store. People are reading, buying books, and making note of books that they will try to get for less on Amazon or at used bookstores.  

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, bookstore sales neared $9 billion in 2022, rising a healthy 6.2% over 2021. We are done with the pandemic after three years.  

Bookstore sales in 2020 tumbled by 46%. Store closings and vaccine-less consumers were fighting a killer outbreak that confused many and put fear into the nation. Now, bookstore sales are a pinch above 2019 levels, and I suspect – and expect – sales to rise again this year.  

If you look at a month-by-month break down of bookstore revenue, December, perhaps because of the holiday shopping season, as the highest of the year. August, perhaps because people are off from school and work, is a close second. February was the least busiest month, coming in at less than half of either August or December.  

Barnes & Noble is opening more bookstores this year. Independents continued a more than a decade-long trend of opening more stores this past year. The world may be digital-centric but when it comes to books, paper is showing resilience.  

We do so much online. We need a break from the screen – from work, shopping, and entertainment – as a book in hand that you can touch and smell and that doesn’t blink or pop-up with messages that interfere with one’s reading is a welcome experience.  

Join the revolution and enjoy the bookstore resurgence. But try not to take up every table at the café. I like to sit at one for hours and breath the air of paper.  

 

Crowdfunding Platforms – Feel free to raise funds for your book on these sites: 

Angel List: angel.co

CircleUp: circleup.com

Crowdfunder: www.crowdfunder.com

CrowdRise: www.crowdrise.com

Funders Club: fundersclub.com

Funding Circle: www.fundingcircle.com

IndieGoGo: www.indiegogo.com

Kickstarter: www.kickstarter.com

Launcht: www.launcht.com

Lending Club: www.lendingclub.com

RocketHub: www.rockethub.com

StartSomeGood: startsomegood.com

SoMoLend: www.somolend.com

WeFunder: www.wefunder.com

 “Reading is my inhale, and writing is my exhale.”

--Glennon Doyle 

“There’s no such thing as a kid who hates reading. There are kids who love reading and kids who are reading the wrong books.”

--James Patterson 

“A writer only begins a book. a reader finishes it.”

--Samuel Johnson

Need Book Marketing Help?

Brian Feinblum, the founder of this award-winning blog, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors promote their story, sell their book, and grow their brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator!

 

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About Brian Feinblum

Brian Feinblum should be followed on Twitter @theprexpert. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2023. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent.  This award-winning blog has generated over 3.3 million pageviews. With 4,400+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” For the past three decades, including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and two jobs at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He recently hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America, and has spoken at ASJA, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. He has been featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald. For more information, please consult: www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum.