Inflation and High Living Costs Cripple Turkey’s Book Industry as Reading Rates Plummet
Turkish bookstore
Rising inflation and the soaring cost of living in Turkey are taking a severe toll on the country’s cultural life. As more citizens struggle to meet basic needs, buying books has become a luxury, forcing publishers and second-hand booksellers into deep financial distress.
According to Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) data, 73% of the population aged 15 and older did not read a book in 2024 — a stark indicator of the country’s growing cultural erosion.
Employees from various publishing houses told NEFES that book sales are shrinking every year, with the sector facing its sharpest decline in decades. One publisher noted that a company earning 5 million TL last year would now consider itself lucky to reach 2.5 million TL in revenue. Veteran booksellers in Ankara confirmed the trend, reporting their sales have halved over the past year.
Tax Burden and Unfair Competition Deepen the Crisis
Bookstores and second-hand sellers are not only struggling with falling revenues but also with heavy tax burdens. Bookseller Ercan Arslan said he needs at least 3,000 TL in daily turnover to keep his store open, yet now earns barely 700 TL a day. “In eight months, I’ve accumulated 48,000 TL in tax debt. We sell books at half price, but nobody is buying — people are just trying to feed themselves,” he explained.
Changing shopping habits since the pandemic have also hurt physical bookstores. Selda Kahveci of İmge Publishing House said online retail giants engage in aggressive discount policies, creating unfair competition that drives smaller publishers out of business. “Publishers have become the corner grocery store; online platforms are the supermarkets,” she remarked.
Declining Reading Habits
TÜİK figures show that despite being a cultural necessity, books have become inaccessible for many. Tolga Akıska, a long-standing Ankara bookseller, said, “People can only afford housing and food.” His income has dropped from 50,000 TL to 20,000 TL in the past year, and he now faces 173,000 TL in tax debt, with his accounts frozen.