The world’s biggest online retailer wants to invade the high street. What’s in it for them?In December, Amazon US released its 2015 in-house all-format all-category bestseller list, and then the newspaper USA Today came out with its own industry-wide all-sources version. What was the difference? Two words: The Martian (good movie, but the book was better). It was a huge seller, number 4 on USA Today’s list, but nowhere on Amazon’s. There were other titles in the same anomalous situation. Why?Because, even now, for most books and most people most of the time, the biggest spur to purchase is actually seeing an actual book in a physical place. Because for most people most of the time, reading is a take-it-or-yawn-leave-it activity. Books are not quite distress purchases, but neither are they exciting enough for enthusiastic online hunting. (Again, for most people most of the time, which I’ll stop repeating now, but only if the e-fanboys agree to discuss the real world, not their pretend version. Deal?) Related: Seattle bookstores face new threat from Amazon: a brick-and-mortar location Related: Amazon begins a new chapter with opening of first physical bookstore Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2016-02-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 16/08/2011 - 16:03 Spending on printed books slumped £1.1m last week, as the UK riots caused retailers to shut stores early and the public to avoid the high street. Although bookshops remained largely unscathed during the rioting, spending... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 11/08/2011 - 09:30 Bloomsbury has said sales have bounced back significantly from a "soft" spring thanks to ebook downloads and greater sales through the high street. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 01/08/2011 - 08:59 Digital sales have helped to bolster profitability for Penguin in the first six months of 2011, with company chiefs looking for organic growth and a focus on the high street over the second half of the year. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 07/07/2011 - 09:02 WH Smiths like-for-like sales have dropped 4%, but the bookseller remains "confident" about its final year results, it said today. In the 18 weeks to 2nd July, WHS total group sales decreased by 1% and like-for-like sales... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Tue, 31/05/2011 - 09:04 An "iconic" London travel bookshop is being put up for sale after 32 years on the high street. The Travel Bookshop, based in Londons Notting Hill area, has been run by its present owner, based in France, for the last 25... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 13/05/2011 - 15:40 Publishers are remaining tight-lipped about recent price increases in books for children and teenagers. Price increases have seen some young adult titles being priced at £18, with some paperback fiction given an £8.99 price... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Fri, 15/04/2011 - 15:24 Booksellers have suffered the worst March in six years, in one of the worst months across retail in almost 20 years. High street and indie retailers seem to be particularly feeling the Spring pinch, after March sales reached a... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Mon, 21/03/2011 - 15:45 Waterstone's has called for academic publishers to "significantly" increase their support for the chain, warning bricks and mortar academic bookselling could vanish from the high street within a few years. The retailer's m.d.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Tue, 15/02/2011 - 09:43 Most publishers are neglecting the marketing role provided by bricks and mortar bookshops, said the head of Quarto as it unveiled its annual results. Chairman and c.e.o. Laurence Orbach said he was "pleased" with the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Fri, 11/02/2011 - 16:13 The rate of decline of independent bookshops slowed in 2010, according to Booksellers Association numbers, despite the testing conditions on the high street and increasing competition from digital. Nearly one indie bookshop a... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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