Booksellers: Czechs spent CZK 7 billion on books in 2011

Czechs spent CZK 7 billion crowns, or around $350 million, on books in 2011, according to a report by the country’s booksellers’ and publishers’ association released on Tuesday. In the first report of its kind, the association said the average price of books sold last year was CZK 240 crowns. Some 16,000 titles were published in the Czech Republic, which was around 7 percent less than previous year, and 15 percent less than in 2008, when a higher VAT rate for books was introduced. The report also says there are around 550 bookstores in the country and some 50 specialized booksellers. One of the specific features of the Czech market is the important role played by wholesalers that run their own retail and online bookstores.

Author: Ian Willoughby