Japan seeks to revive bookshops as they struggle to stay afloat

Govt report cites issues such as comparative disadvantage they face against online retailers

- Walter Sim

From rising logistics costs to cashless transaction fees, Japanese bookshops are under siege as they struggle to stay afloat at a time when fewer people are reading.

These are among 34 challenges identified by a Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Meti) project team tasked with reviving bookshops, in a 24-page report released on Oct 4.

It sounded an existential alarm of a young generation "growing up without knowing what a bookshop is or encountering new books", which it said "could have a major impact on the foundation of our country's existence and competitiveness".

Physical bookshops are a sunset industry in Japan, like their counterparts in most parts of the world, in a digital era that favors less clutter and greater convenience.

The report cited problems such as cashless transaction fees - of about 3 per cent per transaction, which chips away at low returns - and the comparable disadvantage physical bookshops face against e-tailers that deliver books to doorsteps, often faster and for free.

Other issues are unique to Japan, such as pricing fixed by publishers in a policy that was historically aimed at reducing the urban-rural divide, but is increasingly unsustainable as bookshops have no room to raise prices to cover overheads like rent or logistics.

The report also noted that the country may be publishing "too many" titles per year - about 70,000 - which are distributed to bookshops using a consignment system that, on paper, is supposed to protect bookshops by reducing inventory risk and allowing them to return unsold titles.

But the cost of returns is borne by bookshops, which are thus pressured by rising logistics fees. The return rate has also climbed to a record 33.4 per cent for books and 47.3 per cent for magazines in 2023.