Bookseller and Publisher Online has reported that findings from a pre-Christmas survey amongst booksellers and publishers that book sales were down in the run up to Christmas this year.
There are a number of reasons why this may have been the case, ranging from the tough economic year, interest rate rises, the strong Australian dollar to the increased presence of online overseas competitors, and these factors are not unique to the publishing industry. However, one factor is unique: the ebook effect.
Ebooks sales are outnumbering sales of hardback books on a regular basis and by significant numbers. Amazon has reported that the Kindle is the most 'wished for' item and has topped their sales for at least five consecutive months.
My own book buying habits have changed dramatically since I was given a Kindle. While I still spend time browsing bookshops and picking up new releases to admire the covers, I always check the availability of the book on Kindle before making a purchase. I am already amassing a fairly decent 'bookshelf' full of electronic books and am reaping the benefits of the lower prices (more money = ability to buy more ebooks) and the Feng Shui side effects (much more space in my apartment; fewer books squirreled away in places where books shouldn't be squirreled).
However, I am still a sucker for a beautiful book - hardback, illustrated, coffee table-style thing. Which is a good job really, as Green Olive Press is about to embark on its latest adventure... the launch of the Beautiful Books series.
'Olives: A Cook Book' written and illustrated by Bhavna Khanna will be published in April 2011. Watch this space!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Here's an extract from the follow up report by Bookseller and Publisher Online:
ReplyDelete'As noted in our pre-Christmas survey, much of this decline was in the top 10 bestsellers, where sales dropped 50% by value in the 16 weeks after Father's Day to Christmas, and dropped 37% in volume (with average sale price dropping 20.9%) over the period. The volume of sales in the 11-20 bestselling spots remained steady, dropping 8% in value (ASP drop of 8%), while the 21 to 50 spots increased 11% in volume, holding steady in terms of value at 0% growth (ASP drop of 10%).
Overall, the top 50 bestsellers declined 23% in value, 13% in volume, with an ASP drop of 12%.
‘There didn't really seem to be a stand-out book that everyone was buying,' said one bookseller, echoing the responses of many. ‘I mean Keith Richards was popular but it wasn't like everyone was buying it like Stieg Larsson last year ... we do a lot of recommendations and at the moment I am struggling to find a really good author--imagine what it is like for the customers.'