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According to Nielsen data, books are the fifth most-purchased online product in New Zealand - and some publishing executives estimate that online sales could account for up to a fifth of all book sales in the country.
And that makes sense: online retailers often have massive resources at their disposal and little in the way of overheads.
But that's led to a decline in the number of bookstores we have - and the knock-on benefits they provide to the community.
Booksellers NZ's Sarah Forster joins us to explain more.
Photo: © 2014, Ken Wolter