WEMAKEPRICE, Book Transaction Amount Increases by 49%... "Reading Boom in the Untact Era"

Staying Home for Leisure Sparks Reading Trend... Online Book Purchases Increase ↑

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] Recently, as more people spend leisure time at home, a reading craze is spreading. In particular, with restrictions on using bookstores and libraries where many people gather, online book purchases are increasing.

According to Wemakeprice on the 12th, from July to September, the transaction amount in the book category over the past three months increased by 49% compared to the same period last year. The popular fields were infant, children, online education, study/reference books, and foreign books in that order.

Due to remote classes caused by online school openings and restrictions on attending academies, the growth of books for infants and children and homeschooling books appears to be particularly prominent. Among the top 10 best-selling books during this period, 9 were related to infants and children, including Korean and English·history textbooks, and picture books.

The number of people looking for used books also increased noticeably. Used books sold in the recent three months increased by 4.4 times (343%) compared to the same period last year. Wemakeprice explained that as consumers seek practicality amid weakened consumer sentiment, transactions of used books have also increased.

In addition, interest in health has risen, leading to a 62.4% increase in sales of health and hobby books. Comic books, which can be enjoyed for a long time as series during extended home stays, also sold well (47%).

Reflecting this trend, Wemakeprice will hold an event themed 'Reading' on the 13th during the category day special sale. They will open a steady seller collection suitable for reading in the autumn, the season of reading, recommending about 100 products ranging from infant and children’s books to adult hobby books.

A Wemakeprice official said, "Due to social distancing, the popularity of indoor leisure activities that can be enjoyed alone has increased, and the number of customers interested in reading has grown significantly." He added, "Especially, online book purchases, where desired books can be easily found and purchased contactlessly, have increased."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.