

Being able to browse through books encourages their curiosity. People who go to bookshops are looking for inspiration. The bookstore offers a cultural experience

People who buy a book in a bookstore prefer not to order books through the Internet for that reason. Touching it produces a more positive experience. They want to be able to hold the book and browse through it they want to get the smell and sensation of it. So it is about more than just the content. People who visit bookshops say that it is very important for them that they can hold the book in their hands. Bookshops offer the complete experience of the book – and more The study showed that bookshops represent a variety of values that can be grouped into four categories: sensory experience, inspiration, shopping experience, and the value in terms of economic value and livability. Two bookstores in each city were studied: a large one in the city centre and a smaller one in an outlying district. Using that statement as the starting point, the research agency Lysias Advies carried out a study on instructions from KVB Boekwerk into six bookshops in three cities of differing sizes: Rotterdam, Tilburg and Deventer. “Bookshops add to an attractive shopping environment, which means more shoppers and a more pleasant shopping experience, making a town or village more livable.” The shops in the vicinity will be pleased with the image that the bookshop has. This has a positive effect on the ‘livability’ of the immediate surroundings. Bookstores have developed over recent years into a social meeting place with the allure of a cultural institution.

Download the report (Lysias Advies, 2019) – DutchĪ bookshop is much more than a mere sales outlet for books.
