The number of English-language bookstores is on the rise

Thanks in part to social media, the number of English-language books read in the Netherlands is increasing, and with it, the number of shops catering those bookworms.

One in five books sold in the Netherlands is in English, according to industry monitor KVB Boekwerk. The NOS reports that over the past four years, at least ten new English-language bookstores have opened their doors in the country, including in Tilburg, Utrecht, and Amersfoort.

The increase is attributed in large part to social media, particularly the popularity of BookTok, a community of content creators making videos primarily about books.

Many bookstores now stock books popular on BookTok and have entire displays of whats currently going viral online.

These new shops are often operated by people who came from outside of the publishing world. Daan Severijns changed course after a career in IT. He runs Books and Beans in Tilburg together with his partner Ana Maria Vallejo Perez .

“We used to philosophize about what we would like to do after retirement: run a small bookstore in a beautiful location. Then I lost my job, and the wish quickly grew into what it is today,” he told the NOS.