Second-hand bookstores struggle as e-commerce dominates

Istanbul's Sahaflar Bazaar, once a beloved haven for book lovers, now faces a sharp decline as the rise of e-commerce reshapes Türkiye's book market.

With the industry estimated to be worth 4 billion Turkish Liras ($117,268,000), small bookshops are bearing the brunt of this shift.

In the second-hand book market, sales have plummeted by 80 percent, and shopkeepers are pointing fingers at publishing houses for selling books at discounted rates online.

A visit to Sahaflar in Beyazıt and Akmar Passage in Kadıköy — two of Türkiye's most iconic second-hand book hubs — paints a dire picture.

Shopkeepers there say sales have dropped dramatically, and many are calling for drastic measures.

"We need to ban online book sales," one shopkeeper pleaded.

Other echoed demands for municipalities to allocate affordable rental spaces to help small businesses survive.

The downturn is closely tied to the broader economic struggles facing the Turkish book industry.

Research shows that book prices have surged by 60 to 80 percent in 2023 alone.

According to the Turkish Publishers Association (TYB), inflation and rising production costs, particularly in paper, are key contributors to this spike.

The frustration among booksellers is palpable. Many feel crushed by the unfair competition from publishers who sell books online at much lower prices.

"Prices have gone up 400 percent compared to last year," said one veteran bookseller. "Sales are down 80 percent. We can't compete."

Volkan Ağca, owner of Mucize Bookstore, said, "No one wants to lend their books anymore, let alone sell them."

A Sahaflar vendor remarked that, "The big fish swallowed the small fish." Another added, "I used to buy 20 copies of...