The number of online bookstores in the Netherlands doubles

The number of online bookstores more than doubled in the last five years, the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (KVK) reported. Especially the provinces of Utrecht and Noord-Brabant have seen more book-oriented online stores being run. The number of books sold online has stayed at around the same number.

According to the KVK, the Netherlands had 935 online bookstores in 2019, and there are now 1,948. Most online bookstores are run from the provinces of Noord-Holland and Zuid-Holland, with 382 and 396, respectively. The number of online bookstores increased the most in Utrecht, going from 88 to 207 in five years. But the number of online book stores also rose strongly in Noord-Brabant, from 116 to 271.

"There is an increase in the number of entrepreneurs in online book sales, but that does not translate into more online sales," said Marianne Slagter of the Dutch Booksellers Association. She referred to research conducted by KVB Boekwerk, the knowledge platform of the book sector, and market researcher GfK. The study showed that book sales have remained the same over the past three years at 43 million books annually. "So the market is quite stable," says Slagter.

The KVK also reported that the number of physical bookstores has been around the same for years. The Netherlands had 696 of these stores in 2019 and has 665 now. Slagter: "We see that people appreciate looking around in physical bookstores to pick a nice book out there."