Industry Statistics

15 Jul

May Bookstore Sales Disappointing

Sluggish bookstore sales in May, coming in the wake of flat sales in April, were disappointing -- especially when contrasted with the healthy performance of overall retail for the same period. May 2004 bookstore sales of $1,095 million lagged 4.2 percent behind the $1,143 million of May 2003.

By comparison, overall retail sales of $346 billion for May 2004 was 6.8 percent better than the $324 billion for May of 2003.

2003-2004 RETAIL SALES for BOOKSTORES (unadjusted)

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15 Jun

April Bookstore Sales Flat After Strong March

Bookstore sales in April dipped slightly below April 2003 levels, interrupting the mostly upward trend of the last 11 months. April 2004 bookstore sales of $1,015 million were off 0.3 percent from the $1,018 million for April 2003.

As a result, bookstore sales in April failed to keep up with overall retail. Overall retail of $332 billion for April 2004 was 8.9 percent better than the $305 billion for April of the previous year.

2003-2004 RETAIL SALES for BOOKSTORES (unadjusted)

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19 May

BISG's Trends Predicts $44 Billion Book Market in 2008

According to the Book Industry Study Group's (BISG) recently released Book Industry Trends 2004, annual consumer expenditures for books will reach $44 billion by 2008. Trade, mass market, and professional publishing revenues will increase by roughly 10 percent by 2008, with revenue growth higher for university press and college publishers, but the most significant growth will be in the el-hi and standardized-test segments of the industry, with respective increases of more than 20 and 45 percent.

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17 May

March Bookstore Sales Outpace Overall Retail

March bookstore sales continued the generally upward trend of the last 10 months, according to preliminary figures recently released by the Bureau of the Census. March 2004 bookstore sales of $1,076 million were 11.7 percent better than the $963 million for March 2003.

Bookstore sales in March outpaced overall retail sales. Overall retail sales were $336 billion for March 2004, 10.5 percent better than the $304 billion of the previous year.

2003-2004 RETAIL SALES for BOOKSTORES (unadjusted)

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06 May

BookTrends Study Shows Independents Buck Trend & Gain Market Share

Recently released findings from Ipsos BookTrends brought good news to independent booksellers. In 2003, independent bookstores fared well on a unit basis with demand outpacing the overall trade book industry. As a result, the independent/small chain bookstore channel's market position reached a five-year share high of 16 percent (vs. 15 percent in 2002).

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06 May

ABA Unveils 2003 Revenue Survey Results

The results of ABA's semi-annual annual revenue survey of bookstore members indicate that almost 65 percent of the 243 reporting stores saw their sales increase, as compared to 2002. Meanwhile, 35 percent experienced a decline in sales in 2003, as compared to 2002.

Just over 26 percent of respondents saw sales increases of five percent or less, while 20.6 percent saw sales increases of more than five, but less than 10 percent, and 17.7 percent saw sales rise more than 10 percent over 2002.

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13 Apr

February Bookstore Sales Show Healthy Gain

After a flat January, retail sales at bookstores in February increased nearly 10 percent over February 2003, thus resuming the upward trend of recent months. This year's February bookstore sales were $1,145 million, compared to $1,043 million in February 2003.

Bookstore sales in February kept pace with overall retail. Overall retail of $296 billion for February 2004 was 10.4 percent better than the $268 billion of the previous year.

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16 Mar

Bookstore Sales Dip Slightly in January

January 2004 bookstore sales were down a bit from January 2003, thus interrupting the generally upward trend of the previous seven months. January bookstore sales of $2,069 million declined 1.2 percent from the $2,094 million for January 2003.

Bookstore sales for January also failed to keep pace with overall retail, which improved over January 2003. Overall retail sales of $296 billion for January 2004 was 6.1 percent better than the $279 billion for the previous year.

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13 Feb

2003 Bookstore Sales End on Positive Note

Bookstore sales in December 2003 resumed the upward trend of the second half of the year -- a trend interrupted only in November. Preliminary December sales of $2,036 million were 1.5 percent higher than the $2,005 million figure for December 2002.

While December’s increase was modest, it did ensure that the year 2003 ended up 2.4 percent better than the previous year.

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20 Jan

November Bookstore Sales Off Slightly From Last Year

After five consecutive months of gains, retail sales at bookstores turned downward in November. Preliminary data released by the Bureau of the Census shows November 2003 sales at bookstores of $1,041 million, down 2.9 percent from $1,072 million in November 2002.

Despite soft sales in November, 2003 year-to-date sales for bookstores are 2.5 percent better than for the first 11 months of 2002.

Overall retail sales of $316 billion for November 2003 were 5.0 percent ahead of the $301 billion for November of 2002.

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15 Dec

Modest Gain in Bookstore Sales for October

October bookstore sales of $1,064 million were 3.5 percent ahead of the $1,028 million sales figure of a year ago, according to preliminary figures released by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, Current Retail Trade Branch.

With the Census Bureau's recent adjustment of September figures upward from $1,491 million to $1,524 million, October is the fifth month in a row that bookstore sales showed improvement over the previous year.

Overall retail sales for October 2003 of $320 billion were 7.0 percent ahead of the $299 billion in October 2002.

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20 Nov
19 Nov

Holiday Shoppers to Buy More Books According to Retail Survey

Good news continues to fill the cash registers of booksellers, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF) in the second installment of its 2003 Holiday Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, published on November 17. The survey revealed that 60.8 of consumers intended to purchase books, CDs, and DVDs as a holiday gift. Only apparel -- at 62.2 percent.

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18 Nov

September Bookstore Sales Flat After Strong August

September bookstore sales were disappointing in the wake of their strong showing in August. September 2003 sales of $1,491 million also lagged 0.9 percent behind the $1,505 million performance a year ago.

September was the first month in the last four that bookstore sales failed to show improvement over the previous year.

Overall retail sales of $309 billion for September 2003 came in 8.8 percent ahead of the $284 billion in September of 2002.

2002-2003 RETAIL SALES for BOOKSTORES (unadjusted)

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About ABA

The American Booksellers Association, a national not-for-profit trade organization, works with booksellers and industry partners to ensure the success and profitability of independently owned book retailers, and to assist in expanding the community of the book.

Independent bookstores act as community anchors; they serve a unique role in promoting the open exchange of ideas, enriching the cultural life of communities, and creating economically vibrant neighborhoods.

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