Discounters Making Inroads in Book Market

Americans bought more books in 1996, but the gains were largely enjoyed by discount chains, according to a study presented by the American Booksellers Assn. Americans purchased 1.06 billion books for adults last year, 3% more than in 1995, according to monthly surveys of 16,000 U.S. households. Discounters such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Kmart Corp. and Dayton Hudson Corp.’s Target accounted for 9% of the sales, up from 7% in 1995. The share of independent and small-chain bookstores fell to a new low of 18% from 20%. As recently as 1991, these stores accounted for nearly a third of U.S. book purchases. Large-chain bookstores’ share slipped to 25% from 26%. Market share held steady for all other outlets, including 18% for book clubs.