Why bookstores are gaining ground in San Antonio
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Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Stock: Getty Images
Fewer Americans are reading books, but here's the plot twist: The bookstore is staging a comeback, especially in San Antonio.
Why it matters: Once left for dead in the wake of Amazon's rise and the death of Borders, Barnes & Noble and independent booksellers have pulled off a stunning turnaround, opening new stores and reporting higher sales.
The big picture: AI threatens to disrupt information consumption — but bookstores have remade themselves as a hideaway from modern distractions and a place of authentic discovery.
- "The revival is there," Barnes & Noble CEO James Daunt tells Axios.
State of play: Longtime San Antonio indie bookstores The Twig and Nowhere Bookshop, both inside Loop 410, are now joined by a wave of new sellers across the city.
- Pages for Ages opened last summer on the Northwest Side; Bluebonnet Books & Homegrown Goods opened this spring in Beacon Hill.
Zoom in: Book Nerd opened in Castle Hills last October. Co-owner Lauren Smith Richmond tells Axios the COVID pandemic, which spurred a desire for escapism as well as a push to shop local, helped bookstores blossom.
- Now, people seek out what can feel like rare spots to socialize that don't revolve around alcohol. Gen Z is also leading a push to bring back analog experiences.
- Book Nerd has an event space that local book and craft clubs rent out, making the store a community gathering place. People can also hang out there if the space isn't booked, Smith Richmond says.
- A coffee cart, Velvet Espresso, is inside Book Nerd Fridays through Sundays, giving people another reason to linger.
What they're saying: Also helping is Book Nerd's membership. For $75 per year, members get 10% off all purchases, an extra holiday discount, four free event space rentals and a tote bag or other merch.
- Smith Richmond thought only their friends and family would join. But they're up to nearly 200 members in less than a year.
By the numbers: The number of U.S. bookstore companies rose 70% from 2021 to 2025, per the American Booksellers Association.
- 73% of booksellers recorded a sales increase in 2025.
Meanwhile, Daunt of Barnes & Noble is widely credited with turning around the chain since taking over in 2019.
- He empowered local managers to stock books based on what their communities liked to read, renovated stores, overhauled book displays and refreshed the retailer's assortment of non-book items, betting big on toys and games.
- Barnes & Noble is set to open a new San Antonio store at Huebner Oaks this fall.
Reality check: 36% of Americans say they're reading fewer books than they did a decade ago, per a CBS News poll conducted in June.
- Only 23% are reading more, while 40% are reading about the same.
- Meanwhile, AI-generated summaries and dwindling attention spans due to social media threaten to undermine bookstores.
The bottom line: In our increasingly digital world, people want real-life connections — and they're finding them in bookstores.