Bookstores x Media

Chapter 6: Multiplying with Bookstores (12)

If you are going to run a bookstore anyway, you might as well handle everything from book production to sales. This idea is not unusual; Iwanami Shoten, founded in 1913, was originally a secondhand bookstore, and major bookstore chains like Kinokuniya, Sanseido, and Maruzen have also been producing books for a long time. SHIBUYA PUBLISHING & BOOKSELLERS (SPBS), a new book store in Shibuya, Tokyo, has included 'publishing' in its name from the very beginning.

Even for a small bookstore, there are many possibilities for publishing. Since the shop owner builds the store while maintaining an interest in various things, knowledge and information naturally increase. While handling books, thoughts about the books themselves emerge, such as wanting to do something a little differently with a particular book, or wondering why a certain type of book hasn't been published yet. Or, even if it is not a formal book, one might want to edit and sell the content discussed at events or exhibitions held in the gallery as a booklet-like publication. Of course, you could obtain an ISBN and operate as a full-fledged publisher, but if the physical bookstore is your main focus, it might be better to start with a small format. Depending on what kind of books you create, you can also demonstrate the identity of your store. If you cannot sell out the stock at your own store, you can reach out to other bookstores that share your vision and have them carry the books directly.

Alternatively, you can run web media. If you are using social media in the first place, every bookstore is already broadcasting on the internet. In addition, if you create original web media on your store's website, you can also disseminate more stock-type information. Especially if you have unique content or communities, such as galleries, events, classrooms, or reading groups, these can become original content on the web. You can post reports on events and reading groups, host online exhibitions of works, or use the site as a place to present the achievements of students in your classes. Of course, it costs money to start in earnest, but if traffic increases, it not only serves as publicity for the store, but you can also aim for monetization by posting advertisements, selling products, or creating other paid content.

However, whether it is paper or web, monetizing media is not easy. It is a good idea to think about publishers that release books or companies that operate web media, and consider whether you can compete on the same playing field as those who are seriously doing it as a business, or if there is a completely different playing field. Having a physical bookstore as a point of contact is a strength, and in that sense, paper might be easier because even if you have a lot of inventory, you can sell it directly little by little.

In that sense, bookstores with a specific, dedicated community or specialty bookstores might have an advantage over bookstores with an all-encompassing selection. When operating on a small scale, it is easier if a book or a piece of web media has a somewhat narrowed-down target. For example, if it is a bookstore specializing in dog books, you could launch a magazine or web media about dogs, post articles about dogs, and sell dog goods via mail order. Since the customer community is limited to dog lovers from the start, it is easy to gather people who want to voluntarily help with media operations or post content. Because the reader target is narrowed down, advertising is also more likely to be effective. Even if the store is small and far from the customer's home, because there are no spatial limitations, it can be said that it is relatively easy to expand as a voluntary activity of a community centered around a specialized bookstore.

Conversely, it is also interesting when people who already have power as media start a bookstore. In Japan, when celebrities open a shop, most of them are restaurants, but for example, in Seoul, South Korea, there are bookstores run by famous book-loving announcers and book cafes run by popular bands. They have great influence on social media and actually have opportunities to appear in media such as television, so the books they introduce there move significantly. Naturally, they also sell those books at their stores. Even when busy, they occasionally stand at the storefront, and fans visit the store. By skillfully utilizing the owner's own power as media for the bookstore, they can deliver books to people who do not usually go to bookstores. *Reprinted from 'A Reader for Future Bookstores' (NHK Publishing), pp. 224-226