Mondadori Store, Italy’s most extensive chain of bookshops, will expand its network of franchised stores with a plan of new openings that is mainly focused on the central and southern regions of the country.

Ten new stores will open this summer, increasing the unique offer – in Campania, Puglia, Lazio, Sicily and Marche – of books, reading recommendations, activities and events with personalities from the worlds of literature, music and entertainment that characterises Mondadori Store bookshops.

“In recent months our booksellers have been working energetically to ensure that Italian families continue to have access to our editorial offer, confirming, once again, the important socio-cultural role of bookshops.
Today, our commitment to sustaining and supporting the diffusion of book and reading is made even more concrete thanks to new entrepreneurs who have chosen to be part of the Mondadori Store network at a particularly important time for the country’s entire economic and social system,” declared  Carmine Perna, chief executive of Mondadori Retail.

In both large cities and small towns, the Mondadori Group company that manages the bookshop chain extensively covers the whole country and every year serves – between its stores and on the web site Mondadoristore.it – over 20 million customers.
The model focuses on the quality of the buying experience, multichannel services and events, with the needs of the customer-reader always at the centre.

So, the news from the Mondadori Store network includes, the opening in the coming days of the new Mondadori Bookstore del Vomero, in a new location in Naples: a large bookstore on three floors, in the heart of the Vomero district. The reopening of the store in Naples adds to the recently inaugurated store in Cava De’ Tirreni (Salerno) inside the Cavese shopping mall. July will see a new Mondadori Bookstore in Santa Maria Capua Vetere (Caserta) in the main street in the centre of the town, and a Mondadori Point in the historic centre of Angri (Salerno).

Another three shops will open in July in Puglia with new Mondadori Points in the centre of Gravina di Puglia (Bari) and Alberobello (Bari), and a new Mondadori Bookstore in the main street in the historic centre of Francavilla Fontana (Brindisi).

Other regions that have seen the opening of new franchised Mondadori Bookstores include: in Lazio, where there is now also a Mondadori Bookstore in the Boccea area of Rome; in Sicily, with located in the centre of the city on the seafront; in Marche with the opening of a Mondadori Bookstore in Fermo, in the pedestrian precinct of the city’s historic medieval centre.

Mondadori Store, Italy’s largest bookstore chain, has opened a new store at the Carrefour shopping mall in Limbiate, on the outskirts of Milan.

With its rich variety of editorial products, the new Mondadori Bookstore will be a reference point for all lovers of culture and entertainment.
The directly managed bookshop has an area of over 200 square metres with an assortment of 10,000 titles including fiction, non-fiction, classics, comics and a sector aimed at children and teenagers, with books and toys. Visitors will also find the latest music releases and a selection of the best stationery products, gift boxes and gift cards.

From large cities to smaller towns, the model of the Mondadori Group network of bookstores focuses on the quality of the shopping experience, multi-channel services and events, while always focusing on the needs of the customer-reader.

Customers can take advantage of all the Mondadori Store services, such as Pick Up Point, which allows you to pick up a book purchased on Mondadoristore.it free of charge at the point of sale, choosing from a catalogue of over 1 million titles; Order and collect, or the ability to order a book online and then collect and buy it in the store; Home delivery, to have a product ordered in the store delivered straight to your home.

From tomorrow a new Mondadori Bookstore will be open in Rome, at the AURA shopping mall, the large shopping hub opened in the Valle Aurelia area, just a short distance from the Vatican City.
With more than 15,000 titles on sale and an offer of events ranging from meetings with leading protagonists from the world of books and music to children’s workshops, the new Mondadori bookshop will be a point of reference for readers and visitors to the centre and place to discover a world of culture and emotions.

This new opening takes the number of outlets in the Mondadori Store network in the Rome area to 23, a level of coverage that confirms the Mondadori Group chain’s position as the most extensive bookshop chain in Italy, able, through its more than 600 stores, to serve over 20 million customers every year.

The new Mondadori Bookstore, located in a position close to the main entrance to the Aura shopping mall, is spread over an area of 300 square metres, where customers can find the latest book releases in fiction, non-fiction, classics and  graphic novels, an area for children and teenagers with books and toys, a sector for music and films, the best stationery products, gift boxes, and a corner dedicated to the Kobo e-reader.
The store also offer the possibility of accessing a catalogue of more than 7 million books available online at Mondadoristore.it, thanks to Pick up point services, where customers can pick up in the store titles that they buy online; Order and collect, where they can order online and pick up in store; or Home delivery, where products ordered in the store can be delivered straight to the customer’s address.

Inside the bookshop there is also a Mondadori Café, with seating for 35 customers, open all day, from breakfast time until the evening cocktail hour, with healthy gourmet products, and special attention to the needs of children.

Among the first events planned at the store will be a number of appointments for children between the ages of 4 and 10: on 28 and 29 April and 5 and 6 May, from 10 am to 12.30 pm and from 3 pm until 7 pm the Mondadori Bookstore will host two workshops run by professional educators who, using physical and musical expression techniques, will facilitate integration, familiarity between the participants and group training in teamwork.

The Mondadori Bookstore project was designed by Studio Kallipigia Architetti. Mondadori Café was developed in collaboration with Cibiamogroup.

Mondadori Retail, Italy’s most extensive network of book shops with 600 outlets. is aiming to grow further with a development plan for the opening of new Mondadori Bookstores across the country, and offering opportunities to become an affiliate of the  chain.

The business model that characterises the Mondadori Group’s is franchising. With over 550 affiliated outlets across Italy, Mondadori Retail offers a capillary coverage able to reach customers even in the smallest towns. The core assortment of books, is supported by a range of other products, such as music, films, stationery and toys, for an all-round cultural offer.

The Mondadori Retail affiliation proposal is aimed at entrepreneurs with a great passion for books and reading, and who want to become protagonists of the cultural life of their town and able to enhance the relationship with customers and the surrounding area.

“Our franchisees can rely on a prestigious brand, consolidated know-how and all of the experience of the leading bookstore group with a solid image built up over the years that is a reference point for culture and entertainment. Our bookstore development plan foresees the expansion of our presence to the most interesting locations, including the region of Puglia, with the aim of bringing our offer even closer to the public,” declared Leonardo Gazza, Mondadori Retail’s sales director for both directly managed and franchised stores.

Affiliates in Puglia will receive all-round support from Mondadori Retail, from the search for and selection of locations to the layout, the definition of the assortment and training, as well as a framework agreement with banks.

To this end, a collaboration arrangement for the region of Puglia has been organised with the Banca Popolare di Bari, which has very deep roots in the area in which Mondadori Retail wants to develop, in order to provide a tailor-made offer, and making use of all of the location-specific financing opportunities.

The Mondadori Retail affiliation proposal will be presented during four Open Days: on Wednesday 21 June in Altamura (c/o Hotel Fuori Le Mura​ – via Maestri del lavoro, 5); Thursday 22 June in Barletta (c/o BEST WESTERN Hotel dei Cavalieri – via Foggia, 40); Wednesday 28 June in Santa Maria al Bagno – Nardò (c/o Grand Hotel Riviera – CDSHotels – via E. Filiberto, 172-174); and Thursday 29 June in Brindisi (c/o Grande Albergo Internazionale – Viale Regina Margherita, 23.). The events will take place between 5 and 7 pm.

For information and bookings: roberta.sambinello@mondadori.it – www.mondadoriretail.com