'Bookshop.org,' New Online Bookshop Unites 130 Indy Shops To Rival Amazon: 'This Is Revolutionary'

[appalachiablue]

- 'This is revolutionary’: new online bookshop unites indies to rival Amazon. Bookshop.org, which launched in the US earlier this year, has accelerated UK plans and goes online this week in partnership with more than 130 shops. The Guardian. Nov. 2, 2020. *Website, https://bookshop.org/

It is being described as a “revolutionary moment in the history of bookselling”: a socially conscious alternative to Amazon that allows readers to buy books online while supporting their local independent bookseller. And after a hugely successful launch in the US, it is open in the UK from today.

Bookshop was dreamed up by the writer and co-founder of Literary Hub, Andy Hunter. It allows independent bookshops to create their own virtual shopfront on the site, with the stores receiving the full profit margin – 30% of the cover price – from each sale. All customer service and shipping are handled by Bookshop and its distributor partners, with titles offered at a small discount and delivered within two to three days.

- “It’s been a wild ride,” said Hunter, who launched the site in the US in January. “Five weeks into what we thought was going to be a six-month period of refining and improving and making small changes, Covid-19 hit and then suddenly we were doing massive business.”-

Initially starting with 250 bookshops, more than 900 stores have now signed up in the US. “We went from selling $50,000 (£38,000) worth of books in all of February, to selling $50,000 a day in March, then $150,000 a day in April,” said Hunter. By June, Bookshop sold $1m worth of books in a day. The platform has now raised more than $7.5m (£5.7m) for independent bookshops across the US.

“We were 4 employees plus me, working at home, getting up as early as we could and going to bed as late as we could, trying to make it all work. It was a real white-knuckle ride,” said Hunter. “But it was extremely gratifying because the whole time we were getting messages from stores saying, ‘Thank God you came along, you’ve paid our rent, you’ve paid our health insurance this year.’...

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/nov/02/this-is-revolutionary-new-online-bookshop-unites-indies-to-rival-amazon

[niyad]

1. Thank you so much for sharing this great information!

[appalachiablue]

3. Great idea, glad this has started up and wish them the best.

[Hestia]

2. ABE Books used to be *the* rival to amazon, new and used, but amazon bought them out

There was another that I used to purchase from but can't remember now, been too long.

Good thing another website started back up. I hope they inventory all their used books too - publisher's consider used book market is in direct competition to new books and generally won't let bookstores who sell used books to purchase new books. It's either or. Publishers have a choke hold on the book market. The "invisible hand of the free market" needs a sledgehammer taken to it to break the publishers hold.

[appalachiablue]

4. Some years ago I bought hard to find books from ABE, too

bad they were bought out. I like used books as well, they should be included by this new co.

[Harker]

5. Way to stand together!

I spent most of my working life in bookshops, selling both new and secondhand, or hundredth hand, books.

The great majority of sellers, in my experience, tend to view each other collegially rather than merely as competitors.

Count me in!

[dixiechiken1]

6. Great info...

Thanks for posting! 👍

[murielm99]

7. Thank you.

I have about had it with Amazon.