Bookstores almost became a thing of the past, but since the pandemic, book sales have been up 13% year-over-year. While some businesses were forced to permanently close their doors, more than 100 bookstores opened up. They have the younger generations to thank for that.
- Gen Z is everywhere on TikTok discussing the latest book trends
- Meanwhile, millennials are “nostalgic for the big-box bookstores they grew up with.”
Krystine Batcho, a researcher of nostalgia, told “Insider” that, “nostalgia is a refuge, as people turn to the feelings of comfort, security, and love they enjoyed in their past.” So it makes sense why bookstores had a revival during the pandemic when everything felt so uncertain.
As for Gen, “the bookstores of the ’90s are a symbol of a wistful pre-social media time they never got to experience.” Additionally, Gen Z has been taking to TikTok to talk about what books they’re reading while building a connection. The same way bookstores used to do for teens in the early 2000s.