The Ministry of Industry has released a report outlining the challenges faced by bookstores in the country, including low profit margins and intense competition with online stores.
Based on the report released on Friday, the ministry will establish a liaison committee of officials from relevant government agencies by the end of the year to fully initiate discussions on support measures for bookstores.
The report, which was prepared at a time when the number of bookstores continues to decline, notes that digitization has led to a decline in the number of magazine and comic book buyers and regular visitors to bookstores.
It also says the transportation costs of returning unsold books and magazines to publishers are weighing on bookstores’ revenues.
Bookstores cannot pass on higher operating costs, such as rising utility bills, in prices because publishers have the right to set the prices of their books, it added.
Additionally, the report’s analysis showed that brick-and-mortar bookstores are not competing on a level playing field with online bookstores, some of which effectively sell discounted products by offering excessive rewards points to customers. It is stated that bookstores are lagging behind in digitalization, including in the field of inventory management.
In the report, the ministry mentions a total of 34 problems that paralyze bookstores.
According to a survey by the Japan Publishing Industry Foundation for Culture, more than 25% of municipalities in Japan do not even have a single bookstore.
The Ministry of Industry set up a project team in March, directly under his minister, to listen to the challenges of bookstore owners.
“The central and local governments and related industries must understand these problems and do what they can (to revive bookstores),” Industry Minister Yoji Muto said at a news conference on Friday.
