VOL.74/2024.09

 

Korean Publishers’ Efforts to Meet New Readers

 

2024.08.05

 

Publishers have been putting the utmost effort into connecting readers, works, and authors. One of the examples was booktalks, where readers meet the author. Booktalks helped publishers expand the horizon of readers’ engagement with works and maintain fanship, but it was not easy to secure new readers. As a large number of booktalks turned contactless after the outbreak of COVID-19, the small influx of new readers fell even more.
Meanwhile, as the marketing trend in Korea moved onto pop-up stores, many Generation Z started to take shots, do opening rushes, and leave reviews. This trend has made it a must-do event for companies when launching new products (brands). There were even reviewers who left comments on pop-up stores open in Seongsu-dong (the region in Seoul settled as a hot place among Generation Z as it became the hub of pop-up stores).

 

Where both present and future readers gather: Murakami Haruki Station

 

 

Meanwhile, a publishing house, Munhakdongne Publishing, also opened a pop-up store in Seongsu-dong in September 2023, titled “Murakami Haruki Station.” The space, inspired by Haruki Murakami’s book The City and Its Uncertain Walls, was open for about 9 days. It was designed to bring nostalgia to the generation that misses Haruki’s novels, and to provide a direct experience of “the Haruki world” to the generation that is unfamiliar with him. The news of Munhakdongne Publishing’s pop-up store went viral as it was announced in various newsletters in Seongsu-dong, and the pop-up store was so popular that the default waiting time was an hour throughout its opening. Around 3,000 people visited “Murakami Haruki Station” over the weekend, with an average of 300 visitors per day on weekdays.
The majority of the visitors to the pop-up store were the 2030 generation, whom we hoped to meet through the pop-up store, as it was difficult to meet them at conventional events. Furthermore, parents who were fans of Haruki came with their children to introduce them to the author, which was significant because it was an opportunity for readers of the present and future to gather together. The main programs featured an event where visitors could write down “the dream I want to dream” and put it in a mailbox, an event where cards with their favorite sentences were given out, and an event where pass cards were issued to encourage visitors to take photos.

 

 

When it comes to pop-up stores, we cannot leave out the cost. The estimated cost of the “Murakami Haruki Station” was more than five times the average marketing cost when planning it, so some companies may feel intimidated by the cost. One thing I would like to point out is that not all pop-up stores need to be large. Even if it’s a small, confined space, you can still keep visitors immersed by incorporating content in every corner. If you design the space with props and text that convey the mood and intent of your pop-up, readers will feel satisfied no matter its size.

 

Numerous attempts to increase the reading population

 

Later, Changbi Publishers and Millie also organized pop-up stores. In March 2024, Changbi Publishers opened “Ggamnyang Store” based on the IP of its flagship children’s series, Black Cat Ggamnyang, at Hyundai Department Store Cheonho Store and D-Cube City in Sindorim. In April, the company opened a pop-up store called “Sicnic (a combined word of si (meaning poetry in Korean) and picnic)” in Mangwon-dong in celebration of the 500th issue of Changbi Sisun. The stores were filled with various events related to poetry, such as photo zones, merchandise sales, and book talks with popular poets. Next, Millie opened its first pop-up store at The Hyundai Seoul to promote Millie’s original paperback title, The Lost Item Has Returned (Originals). In addition to limited-edition merchandise, the store also collaborated with the stationery brand “motemote” to showcase objects from the book in physical form.

 

 

While the reading population continues to fall, Korean publishers’ efforts to reach new readers and retain existing ones will continue.

 

 

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Written by Jung Kyung-Joo (Marketing Dept., Munhakdongne Publishing Corp.)