Book market in German-speaking Switzerland up 6.5 percent in 2021
The Swiss German book trade can look back on a successful 2021: Compared to the previous year, annual sales increased by 6.5 percent - despite a temporary lockdown. The online market made gains.
Obviously, a lot of books are being read in Switzerland during the pandemic. At least that is what the growth in sales in the bookstores in German-speaking Switzerland suggests. Although these were also closed for weeks in 2021, the interest of readers was unbroken. According to estimates by the Swiss Booksellers and Publishers Association (SBVV), every second book was sold online.
According to a press release on Thursday, not only the large bookstores but also the smaller ones have benefited from this trend. The latter have expanded their web stores. In addition, "many customers are loyal to their local providers online as well," it adds.
According to SBCV, two factors contributed to the sales increases. Books became 1.4 percent more expensive on average and five percent more books were sold.
Christmas business, which started early last year, was good as usual. It was 1.5 percent up on the previous year in 2021. In this context, SBCV refers to studies according to which books are the second most popular Christmas gifts after food. (SDA)
