Final chapter: Book Depository set to close April 26

Sad news for bookworms worldwide.

Book Depository, the popular Amazon-owned online bookstore, shared on Instagram on Tuesday (April 4) that it will be shutting down on April 26.

Customers can still place their orders until 12pm British Summer Time (or 7pm Singapore time) on that day, and deliveries will continue until June 23.

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In the post, Book Depository thanked its fans, noting how "delivering [their] favourite reads to [them] since 2007 has been a pleasure".

Initially a rival of Amazon, the UK-based online bookstore was eventually acquired by the e-commerce giant in 2011. 

The closure is reported to be part of wider cutbacks at Amazon, which its CEO Andy Jassy outlined in a blog post in January.

He stated that the company made the "hard decision to eliminate a number of positions" across the Devices and Books businesses.

Customers bid their last goodbye

In the comments section of Book Depository's Instagram post, netizens from around the world were crushed at the news of its closure.

Several commenters also shared how the online bookstore was one of the few avenues for them to get the books they wanted.

"It's the only way I can get books in English. At least the ones I want," a user lamented.

In light of this closure, local netizens in the Science Fiction Singapore Facebook group shared alternative online bookstores such as Better World Books and Blackwell's for avid readers to purchase their books.

Books for all

Founded in 2004 by Stuart Felton and Andrew Crawford, a former Amazon employee, Book Depository's mission was to make "all books available to all" by improving access, range and affordability.

Its aim was to sell millions of titles across a variety of genres and topics, as opposed to focusing on bestsellers.

Over the years, it established itself as a popular international book e-retailer, offering more than 20 million books, according to its website, and free delivery worldwide with no minimum spend.

ALSO READ: Where to buy books in Singapore (without going broke or leaving your house)

amierul@asiaone.com

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