Irish bookshop figures fall to new low

The number of bookshops in Ireland has dropped by 30 in the past decade, new figures have revealed, but booksellers in the country are currently bullish about the future of physical retail.

The Booksellers Association’s membership figures, provided to The Bookseller, show that the trade body had 238 Ireland-based members in 2008 - including both chain and independent booksellers. That number increased to 254 at its peak in 2013, but has plummeted to a new low of 208.

Maria Dickenson, m.d. of Dubray Books, cited currency fluctuations in sterling as a contributing factor in bookshops’ demise. In a column, she writes: “Our market is frustratingly at the mercy of currency fluctuations... the crash of sterling since the Brexit vote has resulted in a reduced average selling price of 63% per title, a 6% reduction which even the most skilled of margin machinations can struggle to fill.” She pointed to closures of award-winning retailers in Cavan (Crannog Bookshop) and Navan (Blackbird Books).

However, others are more optimistic about the retail climate. Janet Hawkins, owner of Blessington Book Store in County Wicklow, said: “Things are good. Sales were up last year, which was great. We are definitely seeing an improvement from three years ago after the recession, and fiction sales are up.”

Bob Johnston of The Gutter Bookshop, The British Book Awards’ Independent Bookshop of the Year 2017 winner, with branches in Dublin and Dalkey, is also optimistic about the future, despite uncertainty over Brexit. “Things seem to be going well and there is optimism about the economy 218 in general,” he said. “People seem to be more comfortable than a few years ago after the recession.”