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Romance Bookstore Update: July 2025

Romance Bookstore Update: July 2025

There are now 133 physical romance bookstores worldwide; 9 new physical stores opened in July.

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Lady Jane
Aug 01, 2025
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Romancing the Data
Romance Bookstore Update: July 2025
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July continued to be a very busy month for romance bookstore openings, as well as discovering more existing bookstores to add to the directory.

These detailed updates are a benefit for paid subscribers (only US$5/month or US$50/year). Everyone can see the high-level numbers before the paywall, but you’ll need to subscribe for all the juicy details.

A lot of work goes into managing the directory and compiling these updates, so your support is greatly appreciated! 💜

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Overview

According to my research, there are now 133 physical romance bookstores in nine countries around the world, 103 (or 77%) of which are in the United States.

If we also include online and pop-up romance bookstores, the total number of stores grows to 243 (175 or 72% of which are in the United States).

Number of Romance Bookstores

Romance Bookstore Directory

Growth of Physical Stores

I discovered 2 more physical romance bookstores that opened before 2025, which changes the previously calculated growth rates. By the end of 2024, there were 86 physical romance bookstores worldwide—up 856% from 9 physical bookstores in 2022. So far there has been a net increase of 47 physical romance bookstores in 2025 (50 have opened, 3 have closed).

When we look specifically at the United States, the growth has been even more dramatic. Over the same two-year period from 2022 to 2024, the number of romance bookstores in the US increased 1180% from 5 to 64. So far there has been a net increase of 39 physical romance bookstores in the US this year (40 opened, 1 closed).

Growth of Physical Romance Bookstores

There are now 258 bookstores in the directory—27 were added in July.

The following is a breakdown of bookstores by type: Physical, Online, Pop-up, and Coming Soon along with a list of ALL the recently added and updated stores in each category! This includes some new charts as well. 📊

📌 Please note that these categories overlap—a store can categorized as multiple types. For example, a bookstore can be online and have pop-ups, with a physical location coming soon.

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