I attended a panel last week called The impact of COVID-19 on the U.K. Book Market. It was terrific. It explained the effects of COVID-19 on the book industry in the U.K and consumer behaviour during the pandemic. This included but was not limited to the impact on various genres, bookshops and consumers. None of the data presented in this blog post is my own; I collected it from the aforementioned panel.
The study found that 2/5 adults continued to read more as lockdown eased. This was driven mainly by women and younger men.
Since the outbreak of COVID-19 Crime & Popular fiction was widespread for all groups. Whereas, there was very little attention paid to Dystopian Fiction.
Humour and Sci-Fi/ Fantasy gained more interest in young men. There was an increased interest in Wellness & Self-Help books in young women.
Historical, Gardening and Quiz books increased interests for older readers At the same time, romance and cookery won increasing attention for women since the beginning of the pandemic.
However, academic and scholarly publishing has been severely impacted by COVID-19, and the real fallout will only be known after students return to their education in September.
Eighteen per cent of adults were buying fewer books and audiobooks than usual. In contrast, a quarter of adults said that they were buying more books and audiobooks than usual.
Data suggested that while lockdown was active, older consumers were more likely to read books they already owned, and digitally borrowed books. In comparison, younger buyers were more likely to purchase digitally formatted books.
The primary reason why some people had been reading and buying fewer books than usual was due to the limited access to visiting book shops and being busy doing other things. A quarter of adults had bought more books in recent weeks than pre-lockdown. Instead, many more read books they already owned. Bookstore customers were asked when they were likely to return to their shops, and 3/10 said they were likely to return within a month of post-lockdown. Almost half said they hoped to return in three months and a third were unsure.
Publishing Association, C.E.O. Stephen Lotinaga calls this the "strongest year in the history of publishing". The main drive behind Lotinaga stating this is due to "people's ongoing need and desire for books". Books create an escape, and I think that many people were searching for a getaway during this pandemic. For many publishing presses, especially small ones, print sales plummeted. However, this encouraged the industry to input more revenue into the online sector of digital publishing. Eighty-Nine per cent of publishers have said that COVID-19 changed the way that they operated.
During the lockdown, many bookstores had to close down, and as a result, they are now suffering. As book consumers, it would be great to try and help pick up the pieces of the economy that COVID-19 has left behind. Many of us are keen to support the return to normality but have many safety concerns, rightly so. I think we all look forward to helping our smaller businesses and endangered shops in a much safer world. The sooner, the better.
Comments