The term “independent bookstore,” much like “independent publishing,” often causes some confusion among readers. What exactly does it mean to be “independent”? Is it anything that isn’t Amazon? Does it refer to the size of the store’s collection? And why is there so much talk about supporting them?
In this post, we’ll break down exactly what the term “independent bookstore” means and explain the benefits of shopping at indie booksellers, including tips for supporting the local stores near you.
What Is an Independent Bookstore?
An independent bookstore (also known as an indie bookstore or bookseller) is a bookstore that is independently owned, and not part of a larger chain retailer (such as Barnes & Noble). While most consist of a single store, some independent bookstores have several locations.
Some famous examples include Powell’s Books in Portland, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and other famous indie bookshops around the world.
For most of the twentieth century, most bookstores in the United States were independent. But as suburban shopping malls became increasingly popular in the 1960s, so too did mall-based bookstore chains, which saw even more expansion through the 1970s and 80s.
The number of independent bookstores were still at historic highs until 1994, when Amazon was founded. The online retailer sold only books until 1998. By 2000, the number of indie booksellers had dropped by 43%.
While major chains and Amazon both played a role in the decline of independents, Amazon soon began to threaten the survival of even the big-box bookstores, with Borders, B. Dalton, and Waldenbooks closing their doors for good between 2010 and 2011.
The fall of these large retailers left room for the return of more indie bookstores. According to data from Statista, the number of independent bookstores in the US grew from 1,651 in 2009 to 4,100 in 2020.
A study by Harvard professor Ryan Raffaelli connects this increase to the “buy local” movement, which promotes shopping locally to support small businesses and decrease negative environmental impacts. More importantly, however, Raffaelli claims that the indie revival can be attributed to what he calls the “3 C’s”: community, curation, and convening.
Why Are Independent Bookstores Important?
Sticking with Raffaeli’s framework let’s take a look at why independent bookstores are so important to the local economy and your community.
Community
Independent booksellers contribute to a city’s uniqueness and bring local readers together in a way that online retailers like Amazon simply cannot.
Indie bookstores are also good for the local economy. Studies have shown that for every $100 spent at a local business, $68 stays within the local economy, whereas $100 spent at a national chain only returns $43. Buying through large online retailers returns $0 to the local economy.
The reason for this difference is that locally owned businesses tend to spend a much larger share of their revenue on local labor, and buy twice as many goods and services from other local businesses, as opposed to chain locations that send most of their profits back to far-away corporate headquarters or suppliers.
Of course, this applies to most local businesses, not just booksellers—which is why it’s always a good idea to support your local small businesses, including restaurants and other shops.
Curation
You’ve probably noticed that virtually all chain stores, such as Barnes & Noble, look pretty much identical.
If you were dropped into a random Barnes & Noble store somewhere in America, there would be few signs indicating whether you were in Oregon or Alabama. But do you really think readers in Portland have the exact same tastes and interests as readers in Montgomery?
Local, independent bookstores can curate their own inventory to ensure that what they’re carrying satisfies the needs and interests of the local community.
Having a curated selection also allows the staff to have a much deeper knowledge of the books the store carries, which makes it easier for them to make personalized recommendations to shoppers who visit this store. Naturally, this establishes personal connections and further reinforces the idea of a local reader community.
Convening
Successful independent bookstores are more than just a place to go buy a book; they also facilitate events and a local culture that brings the community together.
This can include book club meetings, author meet and greets, and other events, or simply the addition of a comfortable space for book lovers to read, discuss books, or maybe enjoy a cup of coffee.
Independent bookstores are also good for authors. Many new and self-published authors turn to their local indie booksellers for support with organizing events and even stocking their books—two things that are not nearly as easy with large, chain retailers.
How Are Independent Bookstores Doing?
Independent bookstores were seeing a steady upward trend in both sales and the number of stores operating.
The Covid-19 pandemic threatened to undue much of that progress in 2020, with many independent bookstores forced to close their doors, at least temporarily due to lockdown orders, or in some unfortunate cases, permanently, due to the financial damage caused by the lockdowns.
At the same time, though, many indie booksellers turned to online sales platforms, which helped them to survive (and forced them to evolve in the process), while platforms like Bookshop.org (which supports indie bookstores) saw a 400% increase in sales. Read more about the effects of Covid-19 on the publishing industry.
At the start of 2021, surveys returned very mixed results regarding 2020 sales, with some stores reporting a 50% increase over 2019 sales, while others saw a 43% decline. It may be too early to judge the future of independent bookstores after such a rollercoaster year, but the success stories do offer hope.
How to Support Indie Bookstores
The easiest and most direct way to support independent booksellers is to patronize your local bookstore. Not sure where yours is? Use this tool from IndieBound to find the indie bookstores closest to you.
The speed and convenience of an Amazon delivery are of course tough temptations to overcome. Shopping in person at your local indie stories is better for the environment, as it eliminates the shipping and packaging processes, but if you must shop online, shop Bookshop.org.
Bookshop.org partners with indie bookstores to offer a 25% commission on all sales to members of their affiliate program, while 10% of all non-bookstore affiliate sales go to an earnings pool, which is divvied up between American Booksellers Association (ABA) independent bookstores every six months. Learn more about how it all works in our Bookshop.org review.
Do you have a favorite independent bookstore? Tell us about it in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- 10 Famous Bookstores Around the World
- Bookshop.org Review: Amazon’s Rising Rival
- How to Get Your Self-Published Books Into Bookstores and Libraries – The 8 Key Steps to Retail Book Sales
- The Effects of COVID-19 on the Publishing Industry: The Start of a New Era?
As a blog writer for TCK Publishing, Kaelyn loves crafting fun and helpful content for writers, readers, and creative minds alike. She has a degree in International Affairs with a minor in Italian Studies, but her true passion has always been writing. Working remotely allows her to do even more of the things she loves, like traveling, cooking, and spending time with her family.
