Cookbooks Thrive in Tough Times

If you’ve got a fresh idea for a cookbook, now is the time to think about approaching a publishing house.

Why? When times are tough, cookbook sales increase. It seems that people do more cooking at home and they buy cookbooks to help with meal preparation.

Some publishing experts suggest that economic downturns are good for cookbook production.

Consider the following statistics.

• Retailers sold 14.9 million cooking-related books in 2006, a 9% increase from the previous year. (Nielsen BookScan)

• Cookbooks generated $159 million in 2006, an increase of 5.1% over 2005 and 20% over 2002. (Simba Information)

• American women own an average of 15 cookbooks, and three out of 10 women collect cookbooks. (1001 Ways to Market Your Books, by John Kremer)

• Ninety-seven million people gave or received a book as a gift, and the most popular book category was cookbooks. (American Bookseller)

• The cookbook market has sustained a growth rate of 5% annually since 1984 due to strong sales in cookbooks compared to the book market in general. (Trendwire, October 18, 2004)

With or without an economic downturn, it’s not such a bad idea to create a family cookbook. If you aren’t able to create a major seller, you’ll still be able to create an important heirloom to document the way you live and that can be passed down to other generations.

Don’t forget to make a copy for us!