The publishing sector continue the spectacular upward trend registered since the pandemic and will end 2023 with a growth higher than the 1% registered in 2022 and that could reach 2.3%, “due to the increase in prices and the stability of demand & rdquor;according to the estimates that this Tuesday has highlighted in the 8th edition of the Edita Forum of Barcelona the consultant Ignacio López, the head of Market Intelligence of the consultancy GfKrecently merged with another big one, Nielsen.
In his presentation at Forum Edita, organized by the Gremi d’Editors de Catalunya and the Pompeu Fabra UniversityLópez has highlighted “a promising start to the year”, since in the first semester there has been a growth of 0.9% (compared to the same period of 2022, in which it had already grown by 3.5%) and July and August have also been positive. These data imply higher turnover (505 million, approaching the 514 of the best year before the pandemic, 2011, and higher than 2022, which was 501). Some figures that are more remarkable if one takes into account, he has listed, “inflation, the global economic situation, the paper crisis with the price increase of this, the ukrainian warThere is the world macroeconomic situation”. Hence, López quoted Patrici Tixis, president of the Gremi d’Editors de Catalunya, who this Monday said at the opening of the meeting that “the publishing market is resilient”.
These positive figures, however, do not imply more sales. This first semester fewer copies were sold (2.4%), but it was compensated with the increase in the average price of the copy (3.5% compared to 2022). The average price was almost 14.3 euros until June, has risen to almost 15 in July and Augusta figure that the consultant predicts will be exceeded from this September, when the average price of novelties will grow by 7% and will stand at 16 euros.
Manga stagnation
During the first semester, fiction and nonfiction were the best-selling genres. but registered “a break” regarding the comicwhich, López emphasizes, “does not mean that it is not in good health, but that it is a small stagnation after spectacular growth in recent years since the pandemic, especially due to manga.”
Sant Jordi
López has dedicated a special section to Sant Jordi, one of the most important events of the year for the sector, especially in Catalonia. 2021, the face-to-face return after the pandemic, was a “spectacular” year, with an increase in turnover that reached 46.1 million euros, which in 2022 (a day with a memorable storm) dropped to 42.9 million; this 2023 has grown by 4% compared to the previous year reaching the 44.4 million (only in Catalonia, 23.7 million). Here almost a million and a half copies were sold that week (11% more than in 2022) and bookstores concentrated 71% of these sales. In addition, 41% of the sales were of books in Catalan, and 37% of the titles sold were fiction compared to 30% non-fiction and 25% Children’s and Youth Literature (LIJ).
Instead, in the three weeks that the Madrid Book Fair, the market remained stable, bookstores concentrated only 32% of sales and more nonfiction (38%) was sold than fiction.
Health of bookstores
López has highlighted the “great health and strength of the bookstores”, which “are doing things well, have known how to adapt to the times, reinvent themselves and evolve, being great market drivers despite the competition”. They have grown 2.9% in sales (they came from 7% in 2022) and now they have a 43% representation while sales drop in hypermarkets (7.4%). The ‘online’ sale is at 29% (before the pandemic it was 25 and during it it shot up to 35).
In terms of geographical areas, although now Catalonia and Madrid are on a par in book sales (22.3 and 22.6%, respectively), the former has grown by 4% while the latter has fallen by 3%. Valencia and the Balearic Islands grew by 3% and Galicia and the Basque Country fell.
Christmas and Kings
Regarding the key moments of the year for the sector, in addition to Sant Jordi in Catalonia, the highest peak is recorded, by far, in Christmas and Kings. The other positive moments in sales are the ‘rentrée’ in September and the start of the summer holidays.
Related news
Other interesting data from the consultant reveal that we spend an average of almost three hours a day connecting to the internet: before the pandemic we were 165 minutes, in confinement and pandemic, 208, and in July of this year, 177, much of the time, he points out, in WhatsApp or Telegram messaging.
Of the Internet user population, until July, 31% consulted information related to the world of books, but the peaks of consultations are in November and December. The most visited sites, he points out, are those of book specialists.