The bookshop chain Waterstones has seen its sales boosted thanks to the demand of physical books and another multi-million pound investment.
It has been four years since Waterstones was set to collapse, however the retailer, which was sold by HMV to Russian businessman Alexander Mamut in 2011, has managed to plough an additional £8.3m into improving its shop environment and infrastructure. This is on top of the £50m Mamut's Cyprus-based Lynwood Investments has added over the past two years.
This is the first rise in sales for Britain’s largest bookseller since being under the new ownership.
The investment coupled with an improved range of books sales have helped to increase sales by 1% to £392.4m in the year ending April 27, 2015. By comparison, sales fell 6% the previous year to £390m.
According to the Publishers Association, sales of physical books rose by 3% in the first half of 2015, the first lift in three years, while sales of digital books fell by 2%.
Waterstones is also attracting customers with its W Café, which has now opened in 28 shops, and helps to encourage readers to browse and buy.
