The book market and bookstores - France (2024)

1.2 The global book market is driving the bookstore market

The global book market was estimated at $***.** billion in **** (***), and is expected to grow at a CAGR of +*.*% over the period ****-****. [***]

This gives the following estimates for the period ****-****:

World book market World, ****-****, in billions of dollars Source: ****

Until ****, growth in the global book market was strongly driven by China, where the book market grew by +**% between **** and ****. [***] However, the health context has had a strong impact on the market, causing a sharp slowdown in sales growth.

1.3 The recovery of the national market in the context of the health crisis

The book sector remains in good health. In ****, the book market will record sales of over *.* billion euros, the second-best performance of the decade after **** (***), according to GFK estimates. Compared to ****, sales are up by just *%. [***]

Book market sales France, ****-****-****, in billions of euros Source: ****

In ****, after a steady decline in the number of copies sold between **** and **** (***), the market seems to have regained momentum in times of health crisis. It will reach ***.* million books sold in ****, up **.*% on ****. This is a remarkable increase compared to previous years. However, this growth was short-lived, as the number of books sold adopted a downward trend in **** and ****, reaching ***.* million books sold in ****.

Number of books sold France, ****-****, in millions Source: ****

Similar to book market sales, publishers' sales will rise by *.**% between **** and ****, after falling by *.**% in the previous period.

Evolution of publishers' sales France, **** - ****, in millions of euros Source: ****

With median sales of €***,*** and only * bookstores exceeding €***,*** in sales, the bookstores analyzed in **** remain small. In ****, the median sales figure was €***,***, a figure that often included larger bookshops that had been taken over. Among the respondents, ** bookshops are in their first year of business. Moreover, **% of the bookshops surveyed ...

1.4 Foreign trade analysis

The data below concerns customs code ****, "books, brochures and similar printed matter, excluding periodicals and advertising material". However, this customs code does not include dictionaries and encyclopedias.

France's balance of trade in books was in deficit in ****, with exports of *** million euros and imports of ***.* million euros. There will thus be a deficit of **.* million euros between **** and ****, a smaller amount than in **** (***) but higher than in previous years, since it stood at ** million in **** and ** million in ****.

French foreign trade France, ****-****, in millions of euros

French trade balance in books, brochures and similar printed products France, ****-****, in millions of euros

In ****, the main customer countries for French book exports will logically be partially French-speaking countries: first and foremost Belgium, with over *** million euros, followed by Switzerland (***).

Main customer countries France, ****, in millions of euros Source: ****

Main supplier countries France, ****, in millions of euros Source: ****

2.1 Reading, a widespread activity among French people

In ****, according to a study carried out by IPSOS for the Centre National du Livre, **% of French people will claim to be readers, compared with **% according to the same study carried out in ****. Of these, **% claim to read "a lot", **% "moderately" and **% "little". The proportion of those who say they don't read at all is down * points on ****, and up * points on ****.

Among French people who say they read France, ****, in % of readers Source: ****

Marked differences by profile

By gender

The **** survey conducted by IPSOS for the CNL reveals that the French have very distinct reading preferences according to gender. Men's favorite genres are comics and history books (***). [***]

Men's reading preferences France, ****, % Source: ****

Reading preferences of women France, ***, in Source: ****

By age

The table below shows the three favorite reading genres by age group. Practical and lifestyle books are read by all age groups, and come in first place for the under-**s. Books on history are most popular with those aged ** and over.

Source: ****

By book format

We also compare the profile of readers according to their habits of reading books in paper or digital format. **% of readers say they read books in paper format (***), and **% read in digital format, ...

2.2 Buyer profiles and book-buying behavior

Among the **% of paper book buyers in ****, **% say they read more than ** books a year. **% read between * and ** books, and a quarter of the population read between * and * books a year. This represents an average of ** books read in paper format.

French reading habits France, ****-****, in % of French people Source: ****

How can we (***)win over non-customers of bookshops?

It is estimated that around **% of book buyers do not buy their books in bookshops, a rate unchanged from ****. [***] The main obstacles to purchase perceived by these non-customers are :

Reasons for not buying books in bookshops France, ****, in Source: ****

conversely, in ****,ObSoCo carried out a study for the Syndicat des Librairies Indépendants on the reasons why non-customers might be more inclined to visit bookshops. While the first two positions logically include the counterparts of the previous survey (***), other parameters appear, such as :

Not used to going to bookshops; Stores that allow other purchases to be made at the same time; Extended opening hours.

2.3 Reading between leisure and work

In ****, **% of French people blamed lack of time for the decline in reading. However, the figures are rising, particularly the proportion of French people reading outside the home, which has risen from **% in **** to **% in ****. Finally, the evening, before going to bed, remains the French people's favorite reading time, with **% of respondents preferring it to other times.

Where the French read France, ****, in Source: ****

French people's favorite reading times France, ****, in Source: ****

added to all this is the increasing porosity between work and leisure. In ****, more and more French people will say they read as part of their professional activity. This could explain why they are less inclined to read as a leisure activity, outside of work. However, this trend changes in ****, with a stagnation in reading for work and an increase in reading for pleasure.

Breakdown of reading between work and leisure France, ****-****, in Source: ****

2.4 Cyclical demand

Monthly sales index data for activity code **.**Z (***) provided by INSEE reveal a highly seasonal market. [***]

In fact, there are two busy periods for bookstores every year: one in summer and September (***).

Sales indices for book retailing in specialized stores (***) France, ****-****, base *** (***) Source: ****

3.1 Book value chain

The book chain brings together various players, each with a specific role to play:

The author is responsible for writing the book. The printer is responsible for its physical production. The publisher, at the heart of the process, acts as a "conductor", coordinating the various parties involved. In particular, he is responsible for formatting and proofreading the text. In general, the author transfers his or her rights to the publisher in exchange for remuneration, which corresponds to a percentage of sales (***). The diffuser 's role is to promote the work in bookshops, while the distributor takes care of delivery. Wholesalers, on the other hand, buy in large quantities for resale to retailers. Wholesalers can sometimes perform functions similar to those of distributors. These different stages can be handled by a single company, or by the publisher itself. Finally, retailers, whether physical bookshops or online platforms, are the points of sale for books.

Source: ****

3.2 The economic fabric of bookshops in France

We're looking here at activity code **.**Z, or "Retail sale of books in specialized stores"[***]. In ****, *,*** establishments were registered under this activity code, employing a total of **,*** people. However, despite the increase in the number of establishments, the number of employees is shrinking.

Number of bookshops France, ****-****, in number of establishments Source: ****

Sector workforce France, ****-****, in number of employees Source: ****

Geographical breakdown of activity

The region with the most establishments registered under code **.**Z isIle-de-France, with over *** bookshops registered, representing a quarter of all French establishments.

This is followed by the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Occitanie regions, with *** and *** book retail outlets respectively.

Source: ****

The map above can be read by color intensity: the darkest areas indicate a very high number of bookstores in the region concerned; conversely, the lightest areas indicate that the region concerned has few bookstores compared with the rest of the country.

3.3 Book circuits in France

There are four main distribution channels for books in France:

Bookshops; Specialist superstores (***), such as Fnac, Cultura or Leclerc Culture; Non-specialized sup erstores; Online sales platforms.

Bookshops are the *ᵉ physical distribution channel for books, coming in just after specialist superstores, but they remain the number one place of purchase for the French. It is important to note that the different purchasing channels are not mutually exclusive, and that on the contrary, many book buyers are used to varying their purchasing routes.

Bookstore market share France, ****, in Source: ****

Places where books are bought France, ****, in Source: ****

Bookshops

Within the bookstore category, there are different types of player:

By size and sales

We distinguish between large bookstores, known as tier*, and smaller bookstores, known as tier *.

A bookshop is considered level * if its sales exceed ***,*** euros and/or if its catalog includes more than **,*** items.

Bookshop chains, groups of independent bookshops or individual independent bookshops

Among the best-known bookshop chains is Gibert Joseph, whose bookshop on boulevard Saint Michel in Paris is France's No. * bookshop.

Among independent bookshop networks, the main player is Furet du Nord, which acquired Decitre in ****.

Finally, there are also local chains, focused on a region, a département ...

3.4 Increasingly fierce competition from e-commerce

By ****, online sales will account for **% of book sales[***]. Even so, the main distribution network remains physical sales, and bookshops in particular.

In fact, more and more French people are buying books online as a complement to the books they buy in physical sales outlets. GfK reports that */* of online book buyers also buy in-store, a figure that will remain stable between **** and ****, revealing a real underlying trend. An increasing number of French bookshops have set up click & collect services, with *,*** expected to do so by ****, according to the SLF. However, two players dominate the online book sales market: Amazon and Fnac. In ****, Fnac sales amounted to ** million books, **% of which were sold online (***). As for Amazon, the American giant claims to sell "several tens of millions" of books on the French market, and several estimates point to around ** million books sold in ****. We can therefore estimate that the market share of the two distributors in online book sales would be close to **%. [***]

Online book sales market France, ****, in millions of books sold Source: ****

Online purchases by customers of independent bookstores France, ****-****-****, as % of total sales Source: ****

Around **% of bookstores offer online sales or reservations, mainly via platforms such ...

3.5 Networked bookshops

In ****, **% of bookstores surveyed were affiliated to at least one industry association or organization, whether national or local, compared to **% in ****. Furthermore, **% of respondents are members of a single organization, down slightly from **% in ****. Nearly three-quarters of booksellers who are not affiliated to any organization set up their business less than two years ago. Other structures mentioned include retailer associations and the Association pour l'écologie du livre.

Number of bookstores that are or will become members of a professional organization France, **** Source: ****

3.6 A franchise like no other

The Mon Chat Pitre bookshop, set up in **** in Aix-en-Provence by Solène Chavanne and Jean-Philippe Doux, quickly became a huge success, doubling its sales in the space of three years. Building on this success, the founders decided to develop a network of franchises called "ronron librairies". A call for applications was launched on June **, ****, to recruit booksellers interested in this original concept combining books and cats, which is already proving very popular.

Chavanne specifies that it prefers qualified and ideally trained booksellers, to ensure the quality of the network. franchised bookstores will have to meet certain criteria, including a minimum surface area of *** m² and an area dedicated to cats. They will also have to carry around **,*** references, including books dedicated to felines, as well as a range of related products.

The design of the bookshops will be handled by Sophie Ferjani, to ensure a visual identity consistent with that of Mon Chat Pitre. Expansion plans target cities such as Lyon, Paris and Bordeaux, with the ambition of preserving the brand's DNA in each establishment. [***]

4.1 An ever-expanding range of products

The French market boasts one of the widest ranges of books on the market, and this offer has only increased over the years. According to estimates by the French Ministry of Culture (***) , ***,*** titles are available in France, and **,*** new titles, a rate of production that has tripled since the ****s.

Production of new books France, ****-****, in number of titles Source: ****

The "Literature" category accounts for the largest market share (***), which is increasingly appealing to French readers of all ages, but which will see a slight decline in sales of *% in ****.

France, ****, in Source: ****

Sales growth by publishing segment France, ****, in Source: ****

The rise of digital books

In recent years, digital technology has become increasingly important in the cultural goods market: in ****, the digital book market generated *** million euros, representing a *.*% on the previous year, but *.*% higher than in ****. This represents **% of publishers' sales.

Sales of digital books France, ****-****, in millions of euros Source: ****

Share of digital book sales in publisher sales France, ****-****, in Source: ****

This new, fast-growing offering is driven by a growing interest in digital formats: in ****, **% of French people say they read books in digital format, * points more than in ****. [***]

4.2 Book price components

The price of books has been unique in France since the law of August **, **** (***).

According to figures published by the Syndicat National de l'Edition in ****, the largest share of the book price goes to the bookshop (***), while the distributor, printer and publisher each receive **%, **% and **% respectively. [***]

Breakdown of book prices France, ****, in Source: ****

The selling price of a book set by the publisher differs depending on when the book is published:

For example, when a book is officially released in large format, the average price is around **.** euros; If the book is reissued as a club book, the selling price approaches **.** euros; Finally, the paperback format, which is often released * or * years after the original book, is often sold for around *.** euros. [***]

4.3 The strengths of bookshops compared with other distribution channels

Despite the difficulties they may encounter, bookstores remain a channel with strong competitive advantages over other channels. The French are attached to them, and more of them than ever before say they go there, according to a study by Ipsos for the CNL: **% of them now do so, surpassing the supermarkets. According to a study by L'ObSoCo, bookstores win out on the following criteria:

Convenience and time needed to buy books; Pleasure of book shopping; Quality of book selection; Pleasant encounters (***); Quality of atmosphere, setting and furnishings; Quality of advice and recommendations.

These different criteria are all strengths to be developed and built on, to differentiate bookshops from other distribution channels.

4.4 Supply trends: new bookstore models

As in ****, a large proportion of new bookshops are dedicated to multiple activities: **.*% include the sale of products other than books. The number of bookshop-cafés remained stable between the two surveys, with just over one in four (***). Other varied products are also on offer, from gourmet takeaways to IT services or gift items. By ****, half of the bookshops surveyed had diversified their offer, with this trend slightly more marked in villages and small towns. [***]

Distribution of bookshops by type of offer France, **** - **** Source: ****

To boost their appeal and meet the challenges they face, bookstores are innovating, and new models are emerging.

The café-library

The name café-librairie, or bookshop-café, refers to bookshops that diversify their offer to include a café, tea room or snack bar. There were over *** of these in France in ****, many of them in Brittany, Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur and Île-de-France. This new business model not only helps to diversify the customer base and build loyalty among existing customers, but also to generate additional income.velop complementary revenues, as margins on coffee/restaurants are often much higher than in the pure bookshop business. [***]

There is even a Fédération des cafés librairies ...

5.1 Book prices in France

The price of books in France is set by the law of August **, ****, known as the Lang law (***), which establishes the following framework:

The publisher is required to set a retail price, which must be marked on the back of the book; The point of sale may not sell the book at a different price from that set. The only possible discount is a maximum of *% at the checkout or via a loyalty card. The effective retail price is thus between **% and ***% of the price set by the publisher; The sale price may be between **% and ***% of the price initially set in the case of purchases made by the State, local authorities, educational establishments or to enrich the collections of public libraries. Retailers are obliged to provide a free unit-order service; Publishers are obliged to grant retailers a discount in recognition of the retailer's efforts to disseminate the book. This discount must be greater than the discount granted on order volumes.

5.2 The LIR Label

The LIR (***) label is awarded by the French Ministry of Culture for * years, and aims to promote and support the work of independent booksellers.

It offers bookstores the opportunity to :

Promote the label to customers and institutional or private partners; Benefit from an exemption from the CET(***); Benefit from more favorable commercial terms from certain suppliers; Apply for a subsidy from the Centre National du Livre(***).

As of January *, ****, *** French bookstores have been awarded this label, including *** general and *** specialized bookstores. [***]

5.3 Taxation

Book taxation

The French General Tax Code(***) stipulates that works meeting the fiscal definition of a book are subject to the reduced VAT rate of *.*%. A book is a set of printed matter, illustrated or not, published under a title, the purpose of which is to reproduce a work of the mind by one or more authors for the purpose of teaching or disseminating thought.

Bookstore taxation

Since ****, all bookshops have been exempt from the Contribution Economique Territoriale (***) are no longer concerned, but bookshops are also included, provided they generate at least **% of their sales from the retail sale of new books.

6.1 Segmentation

The following segmentation is used for players in the bookstore market:

• Cultura
• Gibert Joseph
• Furet du Nord Decitre (Nosoli)
• Auzou
• Editis
• Hachette Livre Groupe
• Fnac Darty
• Amazon
• Michel Lafon Publishing
• Éditions Philippe Amaury
• Fleurus Editions
• Editions Albert René (Hachette Groupe)
• EDITIONS DE L'HOMME SANS NOM
• EDITIONS MONDADORI France
• EDITIONS DU SEUIL
• Rose & Lilas Editions
• Kana Editions (Dargaud Media Participations)
• Éditions Dupuis (Media Participations)
• Sejer (Groupe Editis)
• Interforum (Editis Groupe)
• Albin Michel Groupe
• Armand Colin Dunod Editions (Lagardère groupe)
• Nathan (Editis groupe)
• Bordas (Editis)
• Le Robert (Editis))
• Retz Editions (Editis)
• Educlever (Editis Groupe)
• Didier Editions (Hatier Hachette)
• Dunod (Lagardère Groupe)
• Editions De Boeck Supérieur (Albin Michel groupe)
• Laballery Imprimerie
• Fayard (Hachette Livres)
• Editions 2024