Daniele Mariani shared with us the latest trends in the publishing sector and how Mondadori Retail is riding the wave, particularly with the Just Comics project launched in stores in 2020.
What are the latest trends in the publishing sector, and how is Mondadori tapping into them?
Over the past four years, the most interesting trends have been related to the world of young readers — which is great news because young people are coming into bookstores and often get into reading thanks to these trends. Let’s start with comics, which exploded in 2020 and 2021 and still maintain revenues nearly three times higher than in 2019. Mondadori Retail launched Just Comics, a project that now plays a key role in our business strategy. Romance saw a huge boom between 2023 and 2024, following the rise of Fantasy, which dominated in 2022 and 2023. The two genres are increasingly blending, giving rise to Romantasy — romance stories set in fantasy worlds. Romance has tripled its market revenue from 2019 to 2024, and Mondadori Retail holds a significant market share. It’s definitely one of our leading categories. These trends have emerged thanks to TikTok and the movement led by book influencers known as BookTok. Another trend for an adult audience, though still smaller than the romance boom, is also gaining momentum — it’s focused on themes of spiritual, mental, and physical well-being, often blending together in a very organic way.
The Just Comics project, launched in Mondadori stores in 2020, has achieved impressive results. Can you tell us how it has evolved?
Just Comics is constantly evolving — we follow our customers’ evolution. Over the past two years, the comic book audience has noticeably evolved. As the market stabilizes, the remaining customers are those who were already passionate about comics before the 2020-2021 boom, along with those who have recently developed an interest. These customers are more demanding, so we aim to raise the bar in specific stores with more specialized and engaging sections.
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Read the full article written by Federica Pazzano on licensingitalia.it
