VOL.74/2024.09

Today’s Local Bookstores Seen Through Data
on Independent Bookstores in Korea

A service for non-readers: a map of local bookstores

2024.05.07

Independent bookstores, each unique in its own way, are significant in that they create new cultures and book ecosystems. There is a platform that collects data on these independent bookstores and shares their locations, activities, and stories with readers online and offline – it is “Bookshopmap,” a neighborhood bookstore map, which started in 2015. In this article, focusing on Bookshopmap, we will look at how the service started, how it works, and how it differs from traditional bookstores. We will also take a look at the changing trends of independent bookstores in Korea based on data statistics from the past 8 years, from 2015 to 2023.

It started for fun

After stumbling upon a printed zine at an independent publication market, I found inspiration. For fun, I embarked on the creation of Bookshopmap, an online platform mapping over 60 independent bookstores, starting in September 2015. The zine I bought then was Independent Bookshop in South Korea in 2015, published by the independent bookstore “Storage Book and Film.” It featured 27 small bookstores across Korea, mostly independent bookstores.
However, as I started to look up the information online about some of the places in it, I realized that some of the bookstores had changed addresses or (temporarily) closed within a few months of publication. So, I put those into My Map on Google Maps - as drafts. I updated correct addresses and open hours, and added descriptions to make it easier for visitors to understand the characteristics of each bookstore. I also tried to do a simple visualization of each bookstore’s distinctive style with iconic symbols such as coffee or tea cups, drinking glasses, and drawing boards. As soon as the service was launched, it was featured in news articles in various media outlets, and the map began to be widely known.

The following year, Bookshopmap further consolidated and expanded its identity as a “map made together” by collaborating with bookstore owners, including Lee Ki-Seop, CEO of Thanksbooks, and released a native app (now out of service) and a booklet through crowdfunding. It has also been a major partner in B2G (Business to Government) that supports the vitalization of local bookstores, as well as in B2B (Business to Business) through social contributions or collaborative support for companies or publishers that seek to do business directly with local bookstores.

* Official website of Bookshopmap: www.bookshopmap.com, Instagram: @Bookshopmap

Is running the local bookstore map profitable?

The main features of Bookshopmap are map search, email newsletter subscriptions, and new book ads. Data is collected in the following ways. First, it collects referrals and public data from reports. Whether or not to include it on the map is based on 3 operating principles - distinct characteristics, communicability, and diversity. Updates are usually done every Sunday. After going through the registration process of screening, categorizing, and editing, the data is updated within 24 hours. An average of 5 reports are processed per week.
Its main features are “Search by my location,” as well as 3 categories, and 90+ topic tags. You can find places to visit near you based on your location, or submit a report if there aren’t any. It also provides categorized information on independent bookstores, libraries, cultural spaces, or places to read. With a total of 90 topic tags, you can choose specific tags such as your location (area) as well as your preferred tastes and activities to help you find what you want.
Its biggest strength is “scarcity.” Dongneseojeom Inc. is Korea’s only independent bookstore data-based publishing company (B2G/B2B) that makes money through online information intermediary services, advertising campaigns, and book / magazine publishing. It produces and provides scarce, high-quality cultural and artistic data. The most important data is the network with booksellers, including their email addresses and mobile numbers. For example, it co-organized and published “Book City Stroll,” a stamp tour exhibition and gathering activity program of the Seoul International Book Fair held at independent bookstores during COVID-19. It also supports online advertising campaigns. The target audience is not large, with a combined total of 23,000 subscribers to Dongneseojeom’s newsletter and Instagram, but it creates significant value as its main subscribers are Generation Z readers in their 20s and 30s who are active in consuming and sharing value, including 800+ independent bookstore owners nationwide. It also publishes book and magazine content both online and offline. Plus, it has been publishing serialized books and map content online and offline, starting with Welcome Today’s Bookshops, created with booksellers across the country, such as Thanks Books.

The status of independent bookstores in Korea seen through Bookshopmap

Half of the adult population in Korea doesn’t read a single book a year. While running Bookshopmap, I wondered why people don’t read books as adults, and on the other hand, why children enjoy reading books. My own conclusion was that it’s because they don’t take tests. In Korea, reading has long been considered an obligation for the adult generation. This pressure has only led to painful experiences. Reading books should be for entertainment. What if we could change the perception of reading as an enjoyable experience instead of an obligation? This is why I thought that independent bookstores, a space that many Gen Z adults visit, would provide the answer.
Bookshopmap is a service for the 25 million people like me who don’t read books. I’m sure that the joyful experience at an independent bookstore with thoughtfully curated books will naturally lead to reading, because since the launch of the service, I, a non-reader, began to carry a book in my bag at all times. As of April 2023, about 800 independent bookstores are listed on Bookshopmap. The figures below are based on only the independent bookstores registered in Bookshopmap, and you can find more information on the actual status of bookstores in Korea in the “Status Report on Local Bookstores (as of 2022).”
The total number of Korean independent bookstores registered on Bookshopmap is 884 as of 2023, up 69 (8.5%) from 2022. This is 1.3 stores registered per week. It is the smallest increase in independent bookstores since the service began in 2015. By region, more than half of them were located in the Seoul metropolitan area (57.9%). The increase was highest in Ulsan (40.0%), followed by Chungnam (29.4%) and Gyeongbuk (26.9%). Now in its 8th year, the total number of users who have found independent bookstores on Bookshopmap through direct and indirect channels is estimated to be around 2.5 million. That still means that 9 out of 10 people have not yet experienced an independent bookstore. There’s still a lot of work to be done.

* See more about registrations on Bookshopmap as of 2023

Independent bookstore changes in Korea

What sets indie (independent) bookshops apart from local bookstores? Until recently, Korea classified and regulated traditional bookstores as local establishments by policy. However, starting around 2015, there emerged a distinction between traditional local bookstores and those frequently patronized by the younger Gen Z demographic, interested in independent publishing. Generally, independent bookstores are characterized by their curated selections or more intricate offerings compared to typical local bookstores.

Then, where are Korean independent bookstores today? The first generation of independent publication bookstores emerged in the 2010s and settled as places which interact and co-exist with their neighbors, respecting diversity based on their distinctive characteristics. And, from around 2015, independent bookstores began to receive the spotlight from the media outlets, as the number of new independent bookstores surged with the visits and word of mouth among the Gen Zs. So, for survival, some began to specialize in a certain field, and general bookstores began to include cafes or other goods. As such, the second generation of independent bookstores could only survive by efficiently utilizing idle space and time (multiplexing), such as publishing and designing in parallel.
Starting in 2020, readers began to demand more comfortable and spacious spaces. Also, as Instagram became more popular, people looked for places to take photos. Moreover, as the bookstore industry was designated by the government as one of the “TYPES OF BUSINESS SUITABLE FOR LIVELIHOOD OF MICRO ENTERPRISES” (large enterprises are only allowed to open 1 new bookstore per year), small and medium-sized bookstores began to expand, opening stores in department stores. Independent bookstores need to develop their own strategies to compete with online. So, they started to offer subscription services that curate and deliver books tailored to readers’ tastes, activities such as reading groups, lectures, and book talks, as well as space rentals and paid memberships where readers can meet like-minded people offline on an hourly fee basis. As a result, more than half of the 362 (56.4%) of the 3rd generation of Korean independent bookstores registered on Bookshopmap were found to hold regular gatherings.

Independent bookstores by generation seen through the cases in Jeju Island

Why do they open bookstores amidst the era of non-readers?

So, why does Gen Z go to independent bookstores? In this era where there are not only online bookstores, but also large bookstores and libraries, why do people choose to go to independent bookstores? I think the most important difference comes from the “people” who run them. They have different business objectives. Because large bookstores (libraries) prioritize sales or social benefits, they tend to be conservative in their operations. Independent bookstores, on the other hand, pursue happiness through interaction and empathy, so they have been flexible and responsive to demand. In addition, independent bookstores fill the shortcomings of being small spaces with the tastes of bookstore owners rather than the tastes of the public. As a result, each small space is unique and specialized in its own way. For this reason, they tend to have their own strengths and weaknesses. And, after all, they need to cooperate as well as compete with each other.
The reason why people open independent bookstores is self-realization (minimalism). They value happiness as the main thing in life. Many bookstore owners have had some experience in the workplace, or started their own business after retirement. Since they chose a business where they can make money doing what they love rather than making lots of money, they say that “earning less, spending less, and sharing what they like are great happiness” that keeps them going despite the hardships. Furthermore, they rarely have “obnoxious customers.” This is a special advantage that all bookstore owners agree on.

“Communities” are the future of Bookshopmap

Baek Chang-Hwa, owner of Little Forest Bookshop in Goesan, Korea, calls independent bookstores “a space of connection, empathy, and consolation.” She also emphasized, “Through the Local Bookshop Network’s ‘Buy Book, Buy Local’ campaign, we must create miracles through readers’ participation and their support, with the aim of saving our local communities.” Going through the COVID-19 pandemic, independent bookstores are now being called upon to serve as a hub for grassroots alternative cultural art education and a space for small communities.
Bookshopmap is set to expand and restructure its activities from a place-based focus, such as independent bookstores and libraries, to a group-based focus centering on group activities in all culture and art fields, such as museums and theaters. Also, under the motto of “Culture and Arts in My Neighborhood,” it pursues a cultural community based on the information on “my location” and conversations. In addition, the service will start testing the Bookshopmap Voucher. Soon, a small amount of vouchers will be issued to about 50 independent bookstores nationwide. Once the ecosystem runs seamlessly, B2B/B2G deals will be stabilized this year and next, and it will grow into a B2C gift-giving service from the year after next. Although we won’t make much money again this year, we will continue to find ways to make a living together.

Written by Nam Chang-Woo (CEO/Product Manager, Dongneseojeom Inc.)