Online Bookstores in the Netherlands See Significant Growth, But Sales Remain Stable
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Loading... - Ivan Ivanov
- 03 Sep 2024
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The number of online bookstores in the Netherlands has more than doubled over the past five years, as reported by the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (KVK). In 2019, there were 935 online bookstores, and this number has now increased to 1,948. The growth is particularly notable in the provinces of Utrecht and Noord-Brabant. Utrecht saw its online bookstores grow from 88 to 207, while Noord-Brabant's numbers rose from 116 to 271.
Despite this increase in the number of online bookstores, the total number of books sold online has remained stable at around 43 million books annually over the past three years, according to research conducted by KVB Boekwerk and market researcher GfK. This indicates that while more entrepreneurs are entering the online book market, the overall sales volume has not seen a corresponding increase.
Interestingly, the number of physical bookstores in the Netherlands has remained relatively stable, with 696 stores in 2019 compared to 665 now. This stability suggests that consumers still value the experience of browsing and purchasing books in physical stores.
Marianne Slagter from the Dutch Booksellers Association noted that although the number of online bookstores has increased, this has not led to a growth in overall book sales, highlighting a stable market with consistent consumer behavior.
