Slightly more bookstore closures than openings were recorded in France in 2025, a negative balance for the first time since the census existed, the National Book Center (CNL) announced on Thursday. 83 bookstores were opened last year, compared to 135 in 2024, and 85 closed, while 57 others were taken over, according to the CNL count.
“After three exceptionally dynamic years between 2021 and 2023, driven by the post-health crisis momentum, then a first slowdown observed in 2024, the year 2025 confirms a shift in the pace of creations,” indicates the organization, which is releasing its study before the National Bookstore Meetings are held on Sunday and Monday in Rennes.
“At the same time, closures, increasing sharply in 2023 and 2024, stabilize in 2025. They mainly concern structures created in the last 10 years, both general and specialized,” she added.
The CNL highlights “a context of economic and financial tensions linked to the continued increase in fixed costs for bookstores combined with a gradual decline in sales in value and volume, and a 6% drop in sales in the first quarter of 2026”.
He emphasizes that 56% of openings took place in municipalities with less than 15,000 inhabitants, mainly in rural, tourist or peri-urban areas.
