Industry Statistics

As the year comes to an end and bookstores are at their busiest, it is crucially important that booksellers continue to report to the Indie Bestseller Lists to demonstrate the power of independents to the industry as a whole.

After months of decline, September retail sales at bookstores were up by 6.3 percent compared to September 2012, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census.

August retail sales at bookstores were down by 4.5 percent compared to August 2012, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census.

July retail sales at bookstores decreased by 6.3 percent compared to July 2012, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census. Year-to-date sales are down 2.1 percent compared to the same period last year.

June retail sales at bookstores decreased by 9.5 percent compared to June 2012, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census.

April retail sales at bookstores fell 5.5 percent compared to April 2012, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census.

BISG asks for input from book industry professionals; Raw BEA numbers announced; Small Business Week begins June 17; British booksellers seek government’s help in fighting Amazon; Lambda Literary Award winners announced; Akashic Books launches Infamous Books

March retail sales at bookstores increased one percent compared to March 2012, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census.

February retail sales at bookstores decreased 3.1 percent compared to February 2012, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census. February’s decline follows five consecutive months of increases.

BookStats annual survey results announced; BEA author events to be streamed live; “Buzz Books 2013: Fall/Winter” released; Prospective booksellers learn the ropes at Paz workshop; Midwest Booksellers Choice Awards finalists announced; Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl challenged at Michigan school; Winner of Hugh Hefner First Amendment Award announced; Bookmasters to distribute TGS International

The ABACUS-12 Survey process has begun. On Wednesday, May 15, ABA main store members should have received an e-mail from the National Association of College Stores’ OnCampus Research with key instructions, updates, and links to the secure, online ABACUS submission form.

January retail sales at bookstores increased 5.5 percent compared to January 2012, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census.

December 2012 retail sales at bookstores were up 2.9 percent compared to December 2011, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census.

The 2013 post-holiday Independent Business Survey, conducted by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance in partnership with ABA and other indie business organizations, has found that independent businesses experienced solid revenue growth in 2012, buoyed in part by “buy local first” initiatives and growing public interest in supporting locally owned businesses.

Entrepreneur.com sees a rebirth of mom-and-pop shops; Preference for digital textbooks climbs; ALA releases e-book license scorecard; NRF forecasts 3.4 percent increase in retail sales for 2013