First supply of books by Han River to small bookstores...Shall we have a warm breeze at the Independent Bookstore?

[Anchor]
Interest in independent bookstores is growing as it is known that Han Kang, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature, runs a local bookstore.

Independent bookstores play an important role in protecting the diversity of publishing even in the red, and the Nobel Prize in Literature has created an atmosphere of coexistence with large bookstores.

Reporter Park Soon-pyo's report.

[Reporter]
It is an independent bookstore operated by Han Kang for six years despite the chronic deficit.

It became a hot spot after winning the Nobel Prize for Literature because it introduces good books selected by writers and meets with fellow writers.

[Today's visitor: I wanted to congratulate Han Kang on winning the Nobel Prize in Literature, so I came to this bookstore.]

Independent bookstores are shunned by large bookstores but play a role in protecting the diversity of publishing by introducing essential books and providing a reading group space.

The problem is that selling books alone is a deficit.

[Nam Chang-woo / CEO of Neighborhood Bookstore: Less than 30 pyeong (bookstore) is not easy to maintain by selling only books. [Because they often continue to maintain the bookstore business by selling coffee together or alcohol together or by earning money through these additional businesses]

In this situation, a large bookstore has decided to sell 2,000 books by Han Kang a day at only eight stores, including Gwanghwamun and Gangnam branches.

Instead, books are supplied first to small local bookstores, including independent bookstores.

It accepted the demand to supply more books by Han River to local bookstores, which are out of stock.

[Chae Woong-jun / Researcher of the Korea Publishing Culture Association: Even if it is a temporary phenomenon, it will be of great help to revitalize local bookstores if books that cause shortages are supplied to local bookstores. In the long run, a lot of ways to co-exist between large bookstores and local bookstores should be discussed.]

Following the unprecedented situation of books being sold out, Han Kang's Nobel Prize in Literature is creating a win-win atmosphere between large and independent bookstores for the first time in a long time.

I'm Park Soonpyo of YTN.



Photographer: Kwak Young-joo
Design: Baek Seungmin