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The Yomiuri Shimbun and Kodansha Ltd. have compiled a joint proposal for revitalizing bookstores in the face of a serious decline in the number of independent bookstores across Japan.
The proposal positions bookstores as cultural hubs of communities that connect people with books, and also as a source of national strength that fosters rich imagination and creativity. Based on this philosophy, the proposal has five clauses, including improvement of the business environment, cooperation with libraries and enhancement of reading education.
According to the Japan Publishing Organization for Information Infrastructure Development, the number of bookstores in Japan fell by about half in the last 20 years, from 20,880 in fiscal 2003 to 10,918. One major reason is lack of interest in printed media due to the spread of the internet, and another is the rise of online bookstores.
Today, more than one-quarter of municipalities in Japan have no bookstores.
The proposal calls for measures to address the current challenges that independent bookstores are facing, such as the burden of transaction fees for cashless payments and delays in digital transformation.
Amid the aging of bookstore owners, there is a need for young, motivated people to enter the industry. The central and local governments are urged to help improve the bookstore business environment with a flexible mindset.
An important task for bookstore support is to provide the public more opportunities to encounter books. This could involve reading activities in cooperation with libraries and the use of specialists with deep knowledge of picture books. Bookstores themselves are urged to make efforts such as creating more attractive bookcase displays and nurturing knowledgeable staff.
In March, the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry formed a project team under the direct control of the minister and has sought opinions from people in the book industry. One of the two leading publishing wholesalers, Tohan Corp., launched a system called Honyal to help small bookstores open. Such efforts by the public and private sectors should be further boosted.
In France, South Korea and other countries, national and local governments support bookstores, such as by holding reading events at bookstores and giving awards to excellent bookstores.
The Yomiuri Shimbun and Kodansha promote print culture and encourage reading. They also share the same opinion on the issue of the decline in the number of bookstores and have held study sessions with experts since last autumn.
