Hello norinhk-ga!
I have tried to compile as much information as possible from
research sources concerning the South Korean bookmarket and the
inclusion of English language books. Since I don’t read Korean, I had
to restrict my search to resources in English. However, I have found
some good information that should provide some answers for you.
It was not possible to find any hard facts concerning definitive
market share of each bookstore in terms of English language books sold
annually. However, the “word-of-mouth” descriptions of bookstores by
those living in Korea, and the amount of English books they contain,
gives some perspective on which companies carry a good assortment of
books written in English. The 1998 Industry Market Analysis of the
South Korean Book Industry is also quite detailed in terms of imported
English-language books.
Bookstores
*************
South Korea’s major bookstores appear to be located in the Jongno area
of Seoul. The major bookstores in South Korea are:
Chongno Bookstore
Kyobo Book Centre
Youngpoong Bookstore
Ulchi
Bandi & Luni’s
Jongno
Jinsol
Read “Analog Infrastructure that is Better than Ever in the Digital
Age.” Pictorial Korea, 2000. Seoul Now at
http://www.seoulnow.net/Features/gallery01-05.php
Also refer to “Seoul – Dining and Leisure for locations an addresses
of some of the major bookstores at
http://www.worldroom.com/pages/wrnsl/leisure/sl_bookstores.phtml
A list of South Korean bookstores compiled by Cambridge University
Press can be found at
http://www.englishsarang.co.kr/cam/index_cam_einfo.htm . Since the
links are all in Korean, it is impossible to get an idea of what they
offer in the way of English language titles. However, note that
several of the stores offer English or imported sections.
The following bookstores are described on Korea.net Directory at
http://www.korea.net/directory/List.asp?Category_id=h00303
English Plus:
With an outlet in Jongno and Gangnam, English Plus is a retailer of
English Books in Korea, mostly for ESL teaching used by English
teachers and Korean students.
Kim and Johnson:
This bookstore mainly deals with English books for children. It has
branches in Gangnam and Hyewha-dong.
Seoul Selection:
Seoul Selection located near Gyeongbok Palace offers books about
Korean art, literature, architecture and religion, translated into
English, German, French, Japanese and Chinese, and Korean films on DVD
in three language subtitles as well.
The following description of bookstores, including their inclusion of
English language books, is excerpted from “Bookstores in Asia,” by
Evelyn C. Leeper. (Last updated 7/30/2002) at
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/4824/asia.htm#seoul
Seoul, Republic of Korea:
English +:
**Major English-language textbook store for the northern half of
Seoul.**
I'tae Won Foreign Book Store:
"A good used book store across the street from Gate #3 of Yongsan
Army Garrison.
***Because there are so many GIs close to the store, it carries a
good selection of American fiction, and has a whole wall of SF, much
of it out of print.***
They also have few books about various Japanese animation series in
good condition for less than you'd pay for them in Japan. As always,
though, their stock varies quite a bit."
Jongro Book Store:
"Covers six floors of a building (I think)."
Kyobo Book Store:
The entire basement is one bookstore, but gives the impression of
"many small “bookstores" because the store is sectioned by books of
different topics. Thus each "section" will have its own cashier,
helpers, etc.
** "They had a good selection of English Language books--I bought
Knuth's Vol 1-3 books there."**
The Ulchi Bookstore (in the underground shopping mall of the
Ulchiro-1-ga subway station).
**"It's got a wonderful selection of English books: everything from
Lonely Planet Guides to Korean language instruction to science
textbooks to recently published novels.**
Not as big (nor as manic) as Kyobo, but with a friendly,
accessible staff who will help you with your purchase if necessary.
Enter across the street from the Lotte Hotel, on the Doosan Building
corner, and you'll see it when you descend on your left." ?
"Good used book store across the street from Gate #3 of Yongsan Army
Garrison.
Because there are so many GIs close to the store, **it carries a
good selection of American fiction, and has a whole wall of SF, much
of it out of print.”***
From “Life in Korea” at http://www.tefa.net/english/ef4.htm
“There are a few bookstores that carry English books. The most
popular is the "Kyobo Bookstore" located in the basement of the huge
Kyobo building in downtown Seoul. You can find everything from Lonely
Planet guides to Shakespeare, magazines etc. However the books can be
quite expensive depending on the exchange rate. Another good place to
purchase English magazines is the U.S.O. They only charge 500 Won over
the purchase price. The Co-Ex building in south Seoul also has a huge
Bookstore which also has a large English book section. Now this place
is really neat. Its a North American style shopping plaza with lots of
shops and a huge food court plus 16 theatre movie complex.”
Market Analysis
*********************
A 1998 Industry Sector Analysis Study of the South Korean Book
Industry, titled “South Korea: Status of the Book Industry at
http://www.tradeport.org/ts/countries/skorea/isa/isar0028.html
contains some interesting information pertaining to the health of the
industry and statistics concerning foreign imported titles. Excerpts
from the report follow:
“Korea has the world's tenth largest publishing industry, with six
percent of the total global book market, according to the results of a
recent survey of publishing and distribution industries in 200
nations.”
“Imports have been increasing at a rate of 15 percent per annum
since the early 1990's. Accordingly, the market for foreign books in
Korea is estimated at Korean won 150 billion (USD 107.1 million at US$
1 = KW 1,400). Additional indirect imports are estimated to exceed
USD 30.2 million each year.”
**U.S. books have established a dominant position by capturing nearly
60 percent share of the import market.**
Imports of books have been strictly controlled
*************************************
Foreign books can only be imported with the approval of the MOCT.
**The number of U.S. books approved for import is increasing every
year, signifying the importance of U.S. books and interest in American
culture.** Of the books recommended by MOCT in 1996, for example,
there were three major types which accounted for the bulk of all
imports: language study texts captured 69.6 percent of the imported
book market; natural
science books garnered 8.9 percent, and art books accounted for 6.4
percent.
**The U.S. produces more than 50 percent or more of all language
study and natural science books imported by Korean distributors and
retailers.**
Market Assessment
*****************
**U.S. books dominated the Korean foreign book market in 1996, with
43 percent of all foreign titles recommended by MOCT and 62 percent,
or 15,563,466, of all copies imported. Most notably, the demand for a
wide range of language textbooks quadrupled from 4,196,925 in 1995 to
17,504,766 in 1996, sparked by interest among students and business
professionals in learning English for overseas travel and study, and
for advancement in positions at Korean and multi-national corporations
nationwide.**
Statistics
************
Refer to the charts in the article to see statistics concerning
“Imported Foreign Books by Country”, broken down 1.) by Title, 2.) By
Number of Copies, and 3.) Translation by Country.
Additional Reading
*******************
For a discussion about the ongoing war between traditional book
retailers and online bookstores in South Korea, read:
“Online-Offline Bookshop War Deprives Readers of `Harry Potter'
Series,” by Lee Chi-dong, Staff Reporter. Korea Times at
http://www.korealink.co.kr/kt_nation/200011/t200011161926034111192.htm
“Publishing in South Korea Today.” Publisher’s Weekly. (8/27/2001)
at http://www.ebooks2go.com/news/news-detail.cfm?newsid=437
I hope the above information has given you some answers to work with.
Not being able to read Korean is disadvantageous, I must say! If you
need additional information before rating my answer, please don’t
hesitate to ask.
Thank you for the interesting research!
umiat-ga
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