Sales Mixed in August
by Staff -- Publishers Weekly, 10/10/2005
Sales Mixed in August
Category
% Change August
%Change YTD
Adult Hardcover
-9.3%
-0.1%
Adult Paperback
13.1
8.0
Adult Mass Market
-7.5
-0.6
Juvenile Hardcover
36.9
118.2
Juvenile Paperback
-6.8
2.0
Audio Books
15.5
37.5
Electronic Books
96.6
44.0
Religious Books
-30.0
-8.6
Higher Education
8.7
5.7
Univ. Pr. Hardcover
-22.8
-31.8
Univ. Pr. Paperback
-5.0
-16.8
Professional
-3.5
-2.0
Elhi
11.9
6.6
(Measured in $ sales against same time period, 2004)
August was an uneven month for the publishing industry, with sales of trade books mixed, sales of educational titles up and sales of professional books down. Benefiting from a (slight) carryover from sales of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the children's hardcover segment had the strongest August, with sales ahead 36.9%. The religious book segment continued to struggle in August, with sales down 30%, while sales in the university press and professional segments also fell in the month. Higher education continued to do better than expected, with sales up 8.7%, and sales picked up in elhi, increasing 11.9% in August.
