The U.K.’s largest online retailer of used books is moving in new directions. World of Books is growing its inventory and expanding into the U.S. market after acquiring and rebranding two U.S.-based online used book retailers, SecondSale and SellbackYourBooks.com, in 2022. WoB, which is headquartered in Sussex, is already operating a distribution center in a Chicago suburb that employs “several hundred,” according to COO Simon Perkins; it is also fully integrated with Ingram to source new books for U.S. customers.
For the past four months, says Sarah Walden, head of supply partnerships, WoB has been focusing on familiarizing itself with the U.S. market, “coming to grips with it and understanding how it differs from the U.K.” and, of course, building relationships with publishers. In the absence of a national trade show, executives are striving to make direct connections in both the independent and corporate publishing spheres by sponsoring publisher conferences. To date, they’ve staffed a table at PubWest in February, IBPA Publishing University in May, and PW’s U.S. Book Show in early June.
“It’s about raising our profile and brand awareness in the new book space,” Walden says. In the U.K., WoB partners with Gardners Books and Ingram U.K., but the company also works directly with publishers on promotions and sponsors Independent Publishers Guild programming and the British Book Awards.
“We want to be seen as the planet’s bookstore,” Walden says, insisting that WoB isn’t seeking to rival Amazon in the U.S. but rather to provide a more sustainable alternative. The used books that WoB sells are acquired primarily from nonprofits to be “rehomed,” as Walden puts it; any used books failing to sell are donated to literacy initiatives in Africa and Asia or are responsibly recycled.
Nor does Wob see itself as competing with bricks-and-mortar indie bookstores. “There will always be people who want to support the independent bookshop,” Walden says. “They’ll go in and buy a coffee with their books or even buy online from that particular store. We’re an alternative. We know that our sustainability credentials are very attractive to customers, so if they want to shop sustainably, then we are a choice.”
