By Jaroslaw Adamowski
The Czech Booksellers’ and Publishers’ Association (SČKN) has published its 2024-2025 Czech Book Market Report, its first annual sales report since the government slashed the VAT on book sales to zero in 2024.“Compared to 2023, the book market grew by 6% in value, although part of the growth was attributable to an increase in imported foreign literature and the growing popularity of audiobooks. E-books also grew at a faster rate than than the overall market,” wrote Martin Vopěnka, chairman of the SČKN and founder of local publisher Práh, in his introduction. “Publishers of printed books recorded an increase of only 4%. So, if the VAT had remained at the 10% rate, it would have been a decrease of 6% [year-over-year in the Czech book market]. It is no exaggeration to say that zero VAT saved the Czech book market during this period.”
It is no exaggeration to say that zero VAT saved the Czech book market during this period – Martin Vopěnka, chairman of the SČKN and founder of Práh
According to data collected by the industry body, Czech book sales totaled around CZK 8.2 billion ($394 million) in 2024, in which the market saw a total of 12,100 titles released. Meanwhile, partial data for 2025 (covering January-November) indicates a higher number of releases over the previous year, with 11,800 new titles reported in the first 11 months of 2025, according to the Czech National Bibliography (ČNB) database.
“Overall, it should be noted that in recent years, the book market has not even remotely compensated for inflation, and has therefore fallen significantly in real terms. In the same period, books have necessarily become more expensive, although, given the current wage level, they have actually become relatively cheaper,” Vopěnka added. “The result is the sale of fewer copies, which creates additional pressure on publishers.”
SČKN reports that the Czech Republic is grappling with many of the same pressures influencing other book markets across Europe, noting that, in response to these negative trends, Denmark has also decided to slash the VAT on books to zero, while Slovakia and Bulgaria have significantly reduced the tax rates applied to books. In Bulgaria, the authorities cut the VAT on books from 20% to 9%, and in Slovakia, the levy was decreased from 23% to 5% percent.
One of the emerging trends exerting a negative impact on European book sales, Vopěnka observed, is the increasing popularity of platforms that facilitate used book sales.
Martin Vopenka
“A new phenomenon in the book market is platforms offering secondhand books—formerly traditional antiquarian bookshops,” the chairman wrote. “It is still too early to assess what impact this will have on the book market. Nor can it be ruled out that part of this volume was previously dispersed among small businesses whose turnover we were unable to track.”
Meanwhile, Czech publishing group Albatros Media has replied to the trend by investing in the Czech-Slovak online secondhand bookseller Restorio as the platform finalized the acquisition of another online bookseller, Trhknih.
Eva Karasová, a PR manager at Albatros Media, told Publishing Perspectives that, while the Czech book market is generally stagnant, the group has managed to grow 15 years in a row. One of the reasons behind its success, she said, has been the capacity to cater to changing consumer needs, such as the growing interest in secondhand book platforms.
The secondhand book trend is impacting several European markets. In France, the French Publishers Association (SNE) is advancing a campaign to pave the way for a financial mechanism to compensate authors for the surging secondhand book sales through online platforms, with French publishers pointing to the negative impact of used books on new book sales. At least 20% of the French market (roughly $407 million) annually, is captured by secondhand book sales, according to the latest available figures from the SNE.
Based in the Czech Republic’s capital, Prague, the SČKN dates back to 1879. It currently comprises some 140 members, and is a member of the Federation of European Publishers (FEP), the European and International Booksellers Federation (EIBF), and also cooperates with the International Publishers Association (IPA).
The Czech Republic is scheduled to be Frankfurter Buchmesse’s guest of honor country in 2026.