Sociology

The difficulty of book retailers, in general, originated from a general shift of consumer preferences. In the past, individual consumers preferred purchasing books on an actual regular basis. Consumers would always like to buy the latest hardcopy of leading books. Today, with the preponderance of electronic gadgets, books can be purchased online. Indeed, books can be purchased easily through electronic preferences.

This shift in consumer preferences is rooted in the social structure. The social structure is currently changing to suit the needs of a growing community. Technology, perhaps, has accelerated the change  a change oriented towards the creation of an electronic society. The books in hard form are a thing of the past. The electronic books or e-books are a thing of a future. The social structure creates a means in order to facilitate this projected change. The internet becomes a medium for transactions, in this case, a medium for purchasing e-books. No wonder bookstores are on the brink of bankruptcy.

It is perhaps more appropriate to consider books retailers as a bifurcated body. Books retailers may be divided into two categories depending on capital  large-capital book retailers and medium book retailers. Books retailers may also be categorized based on geographical location (scope)  national retailers and international book retailers. The criteria for creating categories may be endless but one thing is clear. A macro-analysis of book retailers always demands segregation of market priorities. Book retailers do not act in uniformity. Some retailers are on the brink of bankruptcy. Some retailers are promoting micromanagement to ensure steady returns to capital. A sociologist studying these forms of behavior would likely realize the need for creating categories. Segregation of behavior is necessary in preserving the validity of any study or research.

Suppose that general retailers enter the bookstore market. The immediate effect mediumcapital bookstores will run out of business. However, some bookstores may focus on micromanagement (focus is cost-minimization) to survive in the competition.