In the era of Online Content, Bookstore Owners Are Struggling to Stay Afloat

Even while covid may be declining more than two years later, the situation for these stall owners has not changed. They still suffer losses as clients choose online books and soft copies over hard copies of books.

on Nov 23, 2022

For the numerous bookshops on Avenue Road, life has changed significantly since the outbreak of Pandemic.

Some store owners were forced to shut down their operations and relocate back to their hometowns.

Used academic books, fiction, comic books, and other publications are frequently sold at the bookstores along Avenue Road. This location used to be a major draw for both students and book lovers from all over the city. The store owners, however, have a gripe that online marketplaces are now costing them customers and businesses.

Golden bookstore owner Kiran S stated, "There is no business. We are taking significant losses. Customers who visit this store claim that the price of the same book online is significantly lower than here, so they decide not to purchase any books. Everyone now uses online book platforms, and as a result, we are completely out of business. We used to make close to Rs 2000 to Rs 3000, but now we only make about Rs 600 to Rs 700 due to a lack of business.

Shekhar KK, who owns the Shiva bookstore, claimed that while many students used to visit in the past to purchase books, today everyone either uses internet services or pdfs and photocopies. This is particularly true for engineering students who receive PDFs for research purposes. The internet site suffered the first failures, and after Covid, the business fully collapsed because at that time people started reading books on their phones, according to him.

Engineering student Harish Raj stated, "I use the pdfs that are provided to me for studying. It makes studying easier for me because I don't have to go through the full book to find answers. Additionally, the course books would cost me a fortune, whereas the pdfs are free.

However, book lovers in the city claim that bookstores will never go out of business because nothing can compare to the physical feel of a book. Manju N, who runs a book stall on the sidewalk, claimed that initially, they never had to worry about running their business.

An IT professional named Jijin Ashol stated, "I feel sad to see the state of the bookstores, so whenever I have the opportunity, I buy books. I am confident that nothing can compare to the physical feel of a book.