These are tough times for certain kinds of booksellers. Australia’s largest online book retailer, Booktopia, which was founded in 2004, entered voluntary administration last week, admitting it had been trading at a loss for more than a year. On Wednesday it announced it was axing 165 staff, leaving a skeleton crew to pilot whatever remains of the business. Customers with books on order are in limbo.
It comes after the shuttering of the huge, largely UK-based online book retailer Book Depository. Offering more than 20 million titles, it was a popular option among Australian book buyers, thanks to its free delivery. Amazon – its parent company of more than a decade – closed the operation after flagging large-scale cuts in the company’s headcount.
