Book Stores NAICS 459210
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Industry Summary
The 2,455 book store firms in the US primarily sell books, magazines, and other types of reading materials. Major revenue categories include trade books; text books; CDs, records, and related audio products; religious books; mass market paperbacks; and magazines and newspapers. Book stores also sell meals, snacks, non-alcoholic beverages, souvenirs, novelty items, and stationery products. The industry is concentrated; the top four companies account for 69% of industry revenue.
Challenges of eBooks
Electronic books and their proprietary formats have been a challenge for independent book stores.
Competition from Alternative Sources
Book stores compete with a variety of alternative sources, including online retailers, traditional retailers, electronic distributors, publishers, and libraries.
Recent Developments
Mar 13, 2025 - Online Marketplace For Independent Bookstores Launches E-Book App
- Bookshop, an online marketplace for independent bookstores, has launched an e-book app for Android and Apple devices. The app allows customers to buy digital books from more than 2,000 partnering independent bookstores which receive a portion of sales. E-books are about 1 of every 6 books sold and independent bookstores aren’t part of that business, according to Bookshop founder Andy Hunter. Amazon is estimated to control as much as 50% of the physical-book market and at least 80% of the e-book market, thanks in part to its popular Kindle e-reader.
- Book stores are charging more for comic books as publishers raise prices, according to entertainment industry news site ScreenRant. Publishers priced standard 32-page comic titles at $3.99 for the 12-year period ending in 2023, with some titles (mainly for kids) still at $2.99, according to entertainment industry news site AV Club. Prices have been steadily rising since, however. More than half of all new comics in 2024 cost $4.99, with some going up a dollar or two more with variant and stock card covers, or in some cases, extra story pages. Comic book sales skyrocketed because of the pandemic lockdowns, from $1.28 billion in 2020 to $1.91 billion in 2021 and $2.01 billion in 2022, according to Publishers Weekly. They decreased to $1.87 billion last year. Book stores may be negatively impacted if further price increases cause readers to cut back on comic book purchases, however.
- Consistent experiences from one store to the next, a key principle for most retailers, may backfire for book stores, according to James Daunt, who made Waterstones the largest book store chain in the UK and has brought about a turnaround at Barnes & Noble. Following that approach in book stores leads to an “inherently boring” experience for customers whose tastes vary based on the local community, according to Daunt. Uniform bookstores also leave curation, or the lack thereof, to publishers who pay for their titles to be placed on display tables. The Daunt model calls for turning over bookstore decisions to the managers and associates who engage daily with customers and share their love of reading. This approach means that experiences are tailored by the community.
- Book stores increased prices slightly during 2024, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Book store industry employment increased slightly during the first month of 2025, according to the BLS.
Industry Revenue
Book Stores
Industry Structure
Industry size & Structure
The average independent book store operates out of a single location, employs 10-11 workers and generates $3.6 million annually.
- The book store industry is comprised of 2,455 firms that operate 5,591 stores, employ 71,500 workers and generate $9 billion in annual revenue.
- The industry is concentrated; the top four companies account for 69% of industry revenue.
- Large companies include Barnes & Noble, Follett Corporation, Books-a-Million, and Family Christian Stores.
- The average per-student materials expenditure is about $90 per class or at least $200 per academic term, according to the National Association for College Stores (NACS).
Industry Forecast
Industry Forecast
Book Stores Industry Growth
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