California and Texas may have been the states with the most bookstores in 2012, but the state with the most bookstores per capita was Montana. That was one of the findings of PW’s look at the health of bookselling around the country. PW collected figures on the number of bookstores in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, a total that includes every branch of bookselling: chain stores, big-box stores, independents, and the Association of Christian Retailers’ CBA stores.
Wyoming and Vermont came in second and third in terms of bookstores per capita. In 2007, the last time PW surveyed bookselling by state, the Montana, Wyoming, and Vermont were #3, #1, and #2, respectively, indicating long-term bookselling stability. Despite the fact that none of the three have many chain bookstores (Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million), these states rank at the top because of relatively low populations and relatively high independent bookstore numbers. Perhaps most impressive is Vermont: of its 38 bookstores, only one is a big-box retailer and one is a chain; the rest are indies.
A more in-depth breakdown shows that six states have more big-box stores than traditional bookstores: Arizona, Maryland, Nevada, North Dakota, Utah, and Wisconsin. Of these, Wisconsin ranked the highest in terms of bookstores per capita, at #32, indicating that a strong traditional bookselling presence is necessary for a high per-capita ratio.

Most states have more traditional bookstores than big-box stores, and in 10 states, the ratio of traditional bookstores to big-box stores was 2:1 or greater: Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the District of Columbia. Vermont had the biggest ratio, with 37:1, but Washington, D.C., wasn’t far behind, with a ratio of 33:1. States with high ratios of traditional booksellers were scattered across the per-capita ranking: Vermont, Alaska, and D.C. were in the top 15, but Connecticut, Hawaii, New York, and Rhode Island were at the very bottom. The takeaway: a large number of traditional bookstores alone isn’t enough to ensure a high per-capita ratio—it must be supplemented by big-box stores.

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