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https://www.theguardian.com/culture/article/2024/jul/11/freight-expectations-if-booktopia-closes-where-can-i-buy-books-online>
"These are tough times for certain kinds of booksellers. Australia’s largest
online book retailer, Booktopia, which was founded in 2004, entered voluntary
administration last week, admitting it had been trading at a loss for more than
a year. On Wednesday it announced it was axing 165 staff, leaving a skeleton
crew to pilot whatever remains of the business. Customers with books on order
are in limbo.
It comes after the shuttering of the huge, largely UK-based online book
retailer Book Depository. Offering more than 20 million titles, it was a
popular option among Australian book buyers, thanks to its free delivery.
Amazon – its parent company of more than a decade – closed the operation after
flagging large-scale cuts in the company’s headcount.
But the news is not so gloomy for Australia’s independent book stores, says
Robbie Egan, CEO of the Australian Booksellers Association. He says the
collapse of online giants is “casting a pall” over the local industry, but the
indie sector is holding up well, with book sales down only 2%.
“Bookshops are working their arses off and they are doing well in a brutal
environment, with interest rates going up and cost-of-living pressures.”
Egan says sales data in the book sector is tightly held by each company, but
his association can estimate 15 to 25% of book sales are flowing through the
smaller, independent booksellers. There are about 400 to 500 independent
bookstores in Australia and they have strong businesses, he says."
Readings are excellent.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
