Booktopia

Booktopia specializes in the operation of a website that provides sales of books online. Tony Nash, Steve Traurig, and Simon Nash founded it on February 4, 2004 (the same day in which Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook). It took 3 days to sell the first book as the company was started on a $10 per day budget. Sales were $2,000 After the first month, $30K per month by the 4th month, and $100K per month by the end of the year. It was $200K per month by the end of 2 years. The first 3 years all of the website and fulfilment were outsourced to another company and in 2007 the founders decided to build their own website and do their own fulfilment. They moved to 450 square meters or 5,000 square feet in Artarmon, bought some shelves on eBay, and hired a warehouse manager. Booktopia moved to 2,000 square meters or 22,000 square feet in Lane Cove in 2009 as their commitment to hold more stock and the growth of the business meant they had run out of space. They leased a further 2,000 square meters or 22,000 square feet down the road in 2011. They moved to 10,000 square meters or 100,000 square feet in Lidcombe in 2014 and implemented $4 million worth of automation, conveyors, automatic packing machines, and scanners. They increased their space in 2016 when an adjoining building became available adding a further 3,000 square meters. Total space is currently 13,000 square meters or 140,000 square feet. Investment in automation has increased to $10 million. At Christmas 2018 the Distribution Centre was in bounding and out bounding up to 38,000 individual items per day. Its philanthropic program has donated over $800,000 worth of books and cash to literacy based projects including indigenous literacy. It has sponsored writers' festivals, readers conferences, book awards, library fundraising projects, and many other school fundraisers. It purchased The Co-op Bookshop's online business from its administrator in 2020.

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