Reading rates at record low, yet bookstores keep opening

Minumsa bread sells 490,000 units; women in their 20s and 30s make up half of buyers

Minumsa World Literature Series volumes. [Minumsa]
Minumsa World Literature Series volumes. [Minumsa]

Spending on books and stationery is spreading among South Koreans in their 20s, even as the country's overall reading rate has fallen to a record low — and the number of bookstores has paradoxically kept climbing. The trend reflects a phenomenon dubbed "text hip," in which young consumers go beyond reading itself to buy book-related products, visit bookstores and share their literary tastes as a form of self-expression.

Data from the National Tax Service's tax statistics portal showed that as of June this year, the number of bookstores nationwide stood at 10,203 — up 2.7 percent from 9,932 in the same month last year and 10 more than the previous month's 10,193. Independent bookstores run by individual owners have been a key driver of the increase alongside major chains.

Spending on books is particularly pronounced among people in their 20s. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's 2025 National Reading Survey found that the annual comprehensive reading rate among adults last year was 38.5 percent, down 4.5 percentage points from 2023 and the lowest on record. Among those in their 20s, however, the rate was 75.3 percent — roughly double the overall adult average.

Book-related consumer spending is also on the rise. A standout example is "Minumsa Bread," a product GS25 developed in collaboration with publisher Minumsa. The bread comes in packaging designed after covers from Minumsa's World Literature Series, and each unit includes one of 20 randomly inserted bookmarks featuring works from the series and poetry collections.

The product has been a sustained hit since its launch, with cumulative sales reaching 490,000 units through Thursday. Women in their 20s and 30s accounted for more than 50 percent of buyers — specifically, women in their 20s made up 26 percent and women in their 30s 25 percent.

Book pouches on display at the "29CM×Loft Page to Pages" pop-up stationery store, visited on Wednesday. (Park Yeon-su/The Korea Herald)
Book pouches on display at the "29CM×Loft Page to Pages" pop-up stationery store, visited on Wednesday. (Park Yeon-su/The Korea Herald)

The trend has spilled over into the stationery market. Most of the domestic stationery brands that took part in the "29CM×Loft Page to Pages" pop-up store organized by 29CM sold book-related accessories, with a wide variety of items including book covers and bookmarks on offer. Sales figures reflect the momentum: transactions for "book accessories" — bookmarks, book covers and similar items — on 29CM jumped 30 percent in the January-to-August period this year compared with the same period last year.

On the fashion and lifestyle platform W Concept, transactions for book-related products including titles, book covers and book clips surged about 80 percent year-on-year over the three months from June 1 to Aug. 23.

Foot traffic at book-related events has also grown. The Seoul International Book Fair drew 160,000 visitors when it was held at COEX in Seoul in June, up 10,000 from the previous year. Minumsa has kept its own pop-up momentum going as well: its event at IPark Mall in Yongsan, Seoul, drew more than 1,000 visitors a day until Aug. 26, and the publisher is continuing the run in Seomyeon, Busan, through Sept. 30.

"The text-hip craze is driving strong demand for a wide range of reading-related items," an industry official said. "As consumers encounter diverse books at events held across the country and seek out related products, collaboration merchandise from the retail sector will only keep growing."

The Minumsa collaboration product shown as sold out on GS25's app, Woori Dongne GS. [Woori Dongne GS]
The Minumsa collaboration product shown as sold out on GS25's app, Woori Dongne GS. [Woori Dongne GS]

siuu@heraldcorp.com