The return of bookshops – how did they suddenly become cool again?

Recent years have seen a significant increase in book sales and the success of bookshops, from small-town independent retailers to large chains such as Waterstones and WHSmith. The Booksellers Association reported an increase of almost 200 member stores across the country in the past six years, a huge growth in the independent bookshop industry. This has prompted questions around the reason for this sudden development, and who the driving force is behind this new popularity of books. Studies have found that, despite stereotypes of young people being generally uninterested in literature, Gen Z and Millennials are the age groups most likely to purchase books in dedicated stores rather than online. But why, and how, are young people bringing bookshops back into fashion?

A survey by the Booksellers Association found that independent bookshops may be influencing so many young people developing an interest in reading. These ‘indie’ bookshops were found to have been “strongly committed to turning children into enthusiastic and confident readers” and investing considerable resources into “providing affordable and inclusive access to culture”.

In turn, Gen Z and Millennials are helping the independent bookshop industry flourish

In turn, Gen Z and Millennials are helping the independent bookshop industry flourish; another study found that in recent years, 20-24 year olds were the largest age demographic purchasing fiction books. This development is evident even within the local area – independent bookshops around Warwickshire have reported an increase in custom from younger age demographics. Warwick Books, despite a lack of a significant student population in the town, has found a recent rise in customers in the 20-30 age bracket. Kenilworth Books have also noticed a considerable increase in young people, especially children and teenagers, visiting and asking for recommendations. This is likely in part due to the proactivity of the bookshops: Kenilworth Books have created a dedicated section in the store for young people’s books, and frequently participate in events in local primary and secondary schools to encourage young people to begin reading for pleasure rather than just for education.

Social media may be another factor influencing this change. Communities centred around reading on social apps such as Tiktok and Instagram, respectively dubbed ‘BookTok’ and ‘Bookstagram’, have introduced many young people to literature due to the ease of finding recommendations. The ‘booktok’ hashtag on Tiktok has been used in over 38.6 million videos, and some users have gained millions of followers through creating content around reading. Many bookshops have recently begun creating displays of titles that are particularly popular on these apps, indicating these communities are positively impacting the industry and demonstrating how booksellers are encouraging this activity on social media.

The recent introduction of new technology has also influenced the way in which the book industry functions,

The recent introduction of new technology has also influenced the way in which the book industry functions, most prominently the rise of artificial intelligence and the sudden boom in popularity of AI chatbots and assistants. It is now possible to obtain recommendations from an automated chatbot with knowledge on almost every book available; if ChatGPT is provided with a genre or story element, it immediately delivers a list of ten of the most popular or critically acclaimed titles. A reader can switch from this website to Amazon or another online shop, order one of these recommended books, and have it dropped on their doorstep in less than a day – without interacting with a single human being.

But despite this, the success of bookshops persists. Perhaps in addition to the physical experience of visiting a bookshop and picking up a paperback, people have grown to enjoy the interaction involved. When purchasing a book from an online store, there is a complete lack of human contact; reading reviews and descriptions provide some opinion, but when searching an online shop or giving prompts to an artificial chatbot, you are simply not communicating with another human being. When in a bookshop – whether it is independent or part of a large chain – you’re surrounded by like-minded people from the moment you set foot in the door. There, you can talk to people browsing the same genre as you and ask them for their favourite series, or have an employee recommend something that they have enjoyed. The people surrounding you have personal experiences and investments in the literature lining the shelves, something which cannot be replicated by online reviews written by strangers or an AI’s automated suggestions. Bookshops provide a place – a physical space, real and material, unlike the online spaces of social media – for readers to discuss and discover their new favourite books, something that young people appear to have recently come to appreciate.