Booktopia Pty Ltd is an Australian online bookstore. Founded in 2004, it now turns over $130 million a year, and was listed in the AFR/BRW's Fast 100 eight times, the only company to ever achieve this feat, from 2009 to 2017. In 2016, 2017 & 2019 Booktopia was voted 'Bookstore of the Year'. In 2018 it won NSW Telstra Business of the Year and the Australian Telstra Business Award People's Choice Award. It has been a finalist in the Telstra Business Awards 7 times from 2011 to 2018, the only company to achieve this feat. Booktopia has stated that Australian authors and titles are a key focus for the company. In 2016, Booktopia tried to IPO and was unsuccessful in its listing due to lack of investor interest and Amazon entering the Australian market. Booktopia again tried to raise money through a crowd sourcing platform aiming to close $10 million which was withdrawn after Booktopia was only able to get investor interest of $893,750.
History
Booktopia was founded on 4 February 2004 by Tony Nash, Steve Traurig and Simon Nash in Sydney, Australia. Tony started the business as a side project, working in the evenings and weekends while the family ran their internet marketing consultancy during the day out of a 60square metre office in North Sydney. It took 3 days to sell the first book as the company was started on a $10 per day budget. After the first month sales were $2,000. By the 4th month sales were up to $30K per month and by the end of the year $100K per month. By the end of 2 years it was $200K per month. The first 3 years all of the website and fulfilment were outsourced to another company and in 2007 the founders decided to build their own website and do their own fulfilment. They moved to 450 square metres in Artarmon, bought some shelves on eBay and hired a warehouse manager. In 2009 Booktopia moved to 2,000 square metres in Lane Cove as their commitment to hold more stock and the growth of the business meant they had run out of space. In 2011 they leased a further 2,000 square metres down the road. In 2014 they moved to 10,000 square metres in Lidcombe and implemented $4 million worth of automation, conveyors, automatic packing machines and scanners. In 2016 they increased their space when an adjoining building became available adding a further 3,000 square metres. Total space is currently 13,000 square metres. Investment in automation has increased to $10 million. At Christmas 2018 the Distribution Centre was in bounding and out bounding up to 38,000 individual items per day. In August 2015 Booktopia bought the Angus & Robertson Bookworld business from Penguin Random House. Sales revenue for the 2018/19 financial year were $131 million per annum. They hold 148,000 in stock titles ready-to-ship and sell one item every 6.1 seconds. In 2018 Booktopia won NSW Business of the Year at the Telstra Business Awards and at the Nationals they won the People's Choice Award. In 2016, 2017 and 2019 Booktopia won National Book Retailer of the Year at the Australian Book Industry Awards. This award is voted on by publishers, authors and other industry experts. Booktopia is the only company ever to make the AFR/BRW Fast 100 for 8 years from 2009 to 2017. The company has won countless other awards including Australia's number 1 online bookstore and is currently Australia's Favourite Bookstore as voted by the Australian public. Booktopia's philanthropic program has donated over $800,000 worth of books and cash to literacy based projects including indigenous literacy. It has sponsored writers' festivals, readers conferences, book awards, library fundraising projects and many other school fundraisers. In 2020 it purchased The Co-op Bookshop's on-line business from its administrator.
