TSUTAYA books and magazines sales total 142.7 billion yen in 2020, a new record high
2021.01.21
Press Releases
Tsutaya Bookstore Co., Ltd.
- 34 new stores, relocations, and new member stores, with existing stores achieving 110% year-on-year growth -
TSUTAYA Bookstores Co., Ltd. (Head office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo / President and CEO: Muneaki Masuda / hereinafter referred to as "TSUTAYA") announced that its domestic book and magazine sales from January to December 2020 reached a record high of 142.7 billion yen.
The reasons for the record-breaking total annual sales in 2020 include the opening of new stores, new membership in the TSUTAYA BOOK NETWORK (hereinafter referred to as TBN) (*1), product recommendations through original projects such as the "TSUTAYA Comic Awards" and the "TSUTAYA Picture Book Awards," as well as the development of original products.
■ New store openings and strengthening of store openings by new member companies
Between January and December 2020, a total of 34 new stores (excluding overseas stores) were opened by TSUTAYA Bookstores, a bookstore chain, and through new member affiliations.
In addition to opening Nara Tsutaya Bookstore, TSUTAYA TOKYO ROPPONGI, a pioneering book & cafe that has enjoyed long-standing customer patronage since its launch in 2003, has been renovated into Roppongi Tsutaya Bookstore.
At TSUTAYA BOOKSTORE, new member companies of TBN are opening stores. In 2018, together with Shimachu Co., Ltd., which joined us, we opened the TSUTAYA BOOKSTORE Holmes Amagasaki store, our second store with a "home living" theme. Additionally, together with Scuola Co., Ltd., which joined us in 2020, we opened TSUTAYA BOOKSTORE HIRORO, the first TSUTAYA BOOKSTORE in Aomori Prefecture, and together with Koshidaka Products Co., Ltd., we opened TSUTAYA BOOKSTORE AQUAL Maebashi as the starting point for the redevelopment of the area in front of Maebashi Station.We aim to become community hubs in the local area by proposing various lifestyles that expand from books and magazines in each store's own unique way.
Additionally, Tanishimaya, a bookstore founded in 1872 and with operations mainly in Shizuoka Prefecture, has joined TBN. This allows us to combine TSUTAYA's database marketing capabilities and unique planning skills with Tanishimaya Co., Ltd.'s many years of know-how in operating a bookstore, creating stores with even more proposals.
Overall book and magazine sales at existing stores reached 110% year-on-year growth, with strengthening of "comics" and "picture books/children's books"
From January to December 2020, sales of all books and magazines at existing stores increased 110% year-on-year.
In the "Comics" genre, sales at existing stores increased 138% year-on-year, and excluding "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba" (author: Koyoharu Gotouge/publisher: Shueisha), which became a huge hit in 2020, sales at existing stores increased 115.8% year-on-year. The reason behind this is that "SPY FAMILY" (author: Endo Tatsuya/publisher: Shueisha), which was selected as the grand prize winner of the "TSUTAYA Comic Awards 2020, chosen by everyone" held since 2016, was heavily promoted in stores nationwide as TSUTAYA's recommended comic, with sales increasing 147.5% compared to before and after the award announcement, as the company strengthens its original product recommendations.
Sales in the "Picture books and children's books" category increased 8% year-on-year at existing stores.
By promoting store renovations that include a "kids' area," we are creating stores that are comfortable and allow customers to leisurely choose books with their children.
Furthermore, the first-ever "TSUTAYA Picture Book Awards" was held, with the cumulative sales of the 11 winning works, including the first place winner "The Bread Thief" (author: Shibata Keiko/publisher: KADOKAWA), reaching approximately 95,000 copies in the two months following the announcement of the winners (November/December 2020). The company proposed new works to customers among its popular long-selling picture books, and received positive feedback.
Development of original products and future initiatives
In the "Books" category, sales at existing stores increased 5% year-on-year. As part of this effort, we are strengthening our offering of original products that can only be purchased at TSUTAYA and Tsutaya Bookstores.
In 2020, we released a "double cover version" of author Higashino Keigo's original mystery novel, "The Black Showman and the Murder in the Nameless Town" (author: Higashino Keigo/publisher: Kobunsha), which features a TSUTAYA limited edition color cover in a different color over the cover of the regular version. This was well received by customers, with cumulative sales increasing by 130% compared to the previous two works.
In addition, the "TSUTAYA Bunko" series, which has been running since 2016, is a series in which TSUTAYA bookstore staff produce works that they are confidently recommending to customers as being truly interesting and that they would like them to pick up. As of March 2020, the series has been well-received by many customers, with 100 titles released and a total circulation of over 3 million copies.
In addition to strengthening our original products and produced works, we will also establish the Next Generation Author Literary Award with the aim of "supporting the next generation of authors who will lead the book and manga industry in the future," and will provide comprehensive support for authors from their writing environment to nationwide sales, as well as focus on discovering new talent.
In addition to opening bookstores across the country and creating stores that are rooted in the local community, TSUTAYA is promoting "publishing distribution reform," aiming to enable publishers to continue to publish a wide variety of publications in a shrinking market and to continue delivering these to many customers through bookstores.
To that end, we are working to reduce the return rate by buying out magazines and books and incorporating our own proprietary AI (artificial intelligence) in our ordering process in order to generate optimal profits for all stakeholders in the publishing industry.
Going forward, we will continue to work on "publishing distribution reform," as well as expand the number of bookstores across the country as "places for lifestyle suggestions" that allow more customers to enjoy their time at bookstores. By continuing to create opportunities for customers to encounter high-quality works through our unique database marketing and planning capabilities, we will contribute to the preservation of publishing culture.
(※1) TBN (TSUTAYA BOOK NETWORK): A general term for the network of franchises within the "TSUTAYA" and "Tsutaya Bookstore" store chains, primarily selling books and magazines.
Materials related to this matter
TSUTAYA books and magazines sales total 142.7 billion yen in 2020, a new record high
Inquiries regarding this matter
Tsutaya Bookstore Co., Ltd. Public Relations
03-6800-4764
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