Money may be tight, but Canadians still buying books
Last Updated: Monday, April 6, 2009 | 3:00 PM ET
The Canadian Press
Book sales in Canada rose nearly seven per cent in the first quarter, even higher than during the holiday shopping season.
This proves Canadians regard books as "a staple, not a luxury," according to a spokesman for industry organization BookNet Canada.
BookNet Canada, which tracks sales across the country, said the volume of books sold was up 6.7 per cent in the first quarter compared to last year.
The value of books sold jumped five per cent in the January-March period.
That compared to a six per cent increase in volume and two per cent increase year-over-year in the October-December period.
"This was when the other shoe was supposed to drop, after Christmas when gift sales were no longer a factor. But in the face of declining book sales in the U.S. and U.K., we are still seeing steady performance in English-language Canadian book sales in Q1," BookNet Canada CEO Michael Tamblyn said in a statement.
"For the time being, Canadians continue to view books as a staple, not a luxury."
The data is drawn from BookNet Canada's national book sales tracking system, BNC SalesData, using the year-over-year sales from a fixed panel of 665 retail locations from across the country.
BNC SalesData tracks approximately 75 per cent of the Canadian book market with data from more than 1,000 retail sources, including chains, independents, online, college/university stores, and non-traditional bookstores, such as specialty and discount stores.
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