Drowned in books: A man looks for a book in a store at Blok M Square. JP/Ika Krismantari

Money does matter for most Jakartans when it comes to buying books, as books are still regarded as luxurious items.

And 27-year-old civil servant Kartik Winta Apriliani certainly shares this belief.

“I love books, but they are so expensive nowadays,” said Winta, who likes to read new English literature.

Winta, who used to live in Yogyakarta, cherished the city of students’ alternative bookstores, which frequently sold books at discount prices. Now she lives in Jakarta, she’s struggling to find the same type of bookstores.
“A friend told me to go Senen, but I have never been there,” she said.

For cash-strapped Jakarta book lovers, Senen’s second-hand book market established in 1979, is a haven for cheap antique, dog-eared and even brand new books such as Twilight’s famous series.

People from all social classes flock to this place, including students, office workers, housewives, researchers, politicians and artists from all parts of Jakarta.

Given the potential for business, another second-hand book market has opened in Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, East Jakarta, with booksellers even entering some of the city’s malls to tap into bigger markets.  

The malls that have second-hand bookstores include Blok M Square, Plaza Semanggi, Bekasi Square, Jakarta City Center and ITC Kuningan.

“The demand is always there. I opened a store in the mall to cater for people who find purchasing new books in bookstores too expensive,” bookseller Doly Syamsudin said, adding he could generate a net profit of up to Rp 15 million (US$1,590) each month.

Doly has been running his book business for 14 years. He inherited the business from his father, who had a bookstall in Senen. For safety reasons, Doly moved the outlet to Taman Mini in 1986 and opened a branch in Plaza Semanggi just three months ago.

Doly hopes that by opening a branch in malls, he will be able to expand his business and reach out to new customers.

His current customers include not only students and mall visitors, but also the US Library Congress, Kyoto University even Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo.

For booksellers who cannot afford to open a shop in a mall, there is always the option opening a digital shop on the Internet.

Martin Grahita, the owner of an online comic bookshop, jumped into ecommerce for economic reasons.

“Besides, I can run this online business simultaneously while doing other jobs,” said Martin, who owns www.radjakomikbekas.blogspot.com as well as working for a private company.  

Commenting on the growing of alternative bookshops in the capital, Petrus Waworuntu, the president director of Gramedia bookstores, said second-hand bookstores didn’t present a threat to major book retailers like Gramedia, which control up to 60 percent of book sales in this country.

“We target different segments of the market, people who want new books,” he said over the phone.

— JP/Ika Krismantari

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