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Online bookstores open physical branches amid pandemic sales boom
During the pandemic, online bookshops have helped people feel connected to the outside world.
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Book bundle: A recent Buku Seni Rupa collection that was released during pandemic. (JP/Firdaus Akmal) (JP/Firdaus Akmal)
During the pandemic, online bookshops have helped people feel connected to the outside world.
Piles of neatly wrapped books are regularly seen on the terrace of Buku Akik, ready to be delivered by couriers. Inside the building, a room is filled with rows of tall bookshelves packed from top to bottom. Visitors browse through the collection, looking for titles that interest them. This is the daily scene at the shop.
"We recently opened an offline store. Before, we operated fully online," said Tomi Wibisono, Buku Akik’s founder.
The shop is one of a growing number of physical bookstores in Indonesia that began exclusively online.
Previously selling books only through Instagram and e-marketplaces, Buku Akik has now been able to open a physical store in Ngaglik, Yogyakarta.
"In 2014, the akik [gemstone] collecting trend swept Indonesia. People glorify gemstones, but we believe books are way more precious than gemstones. That's why we [named our store] Buku Akik. At that time, there weren't many online bookshops besides us,” said Tomi.
