Mondadori Retail accelerates its franchising: 30 new bookshops in 2026, from north to south

Mondadori Retail continues its development journey, complementing the growth of company-owned stores with the expansion of its franchised network.

After the more than 100 affiliated bookshops opened over the past 5 years, the company has accelerated further in 2026 with 30 new stores: of these, 21 have already opened to the public, while 9 will open by the end of December in Calabria, Puglia, Sicily and Veneto.

A solid business model

A result that confirms the strength of the franchising business model, complementary to the direct management of stores and fundamental to ensuring a widespread presence, diversification and proximity to readers thanks to the passion of its partner booksellers. Franchising also stands out as an important growth driver for the network, including in economic terms: in 2025 the channel generated revenues of more than 100 million euros, accounting for approximately 45% of Mondadori Retail's total turnover.

The Mondadori Store franchised bookshop network also represents a true entrepreneurial ecosystem which, thanks to the experience and vision of its franchisees, is able to promote the spread of culture in local areas and create new jobs. The people employed in franchised Mondadori Bookstores number approximately 1.000, alongside 320 affiliated entrepreneurs, of whom 150 have been part of the network for more than 10 years or lead multiple businesses.

The variety of the franchised network

From residential areas in large cities to historic town centres and even the smallest municipalities, including those on islands: Mondadori Retail's affiliated bookshops provide tangible evidence of the richness and variety of a model capable of engaging with communities and needs that differ profoundly from one another.

Among the most significant examples is the Mondadori Bookstore in Scampia, a strategic cultural hub with high symbolic value, established in October in a peripheral area of Naples characterised by a large youth and student population and previously lacking spaces dedicated to reading. A successful example of a multi-store project is the Rome Eur bookshop, opened last month by the same franchisee as the bookshops in Velletri, Lariano, Genzano di Roma, Frascati, Cisterna and San Cesareo.

The network will soon include businesses such as the Mondadori Bookstore in Biella, a historic bookshop in the city with a strong local identity that will shortly join the franchised network, as well as other new settings intended to enrich and enhance the social fabric of historic town centres, such as the store soon to open in Bassano del Grappa (Vicenza). Further examples of Mondadori Retail's attention to areas historically less well served by bookshops include the Mondadori Bookstore in Partinico (Palermo), opened last August, and the Mondadori Point in Leni, which for years has served the small municipality on the island of Salina with only 667 inhabitants.

A wealth of know-how

The franchising model represents a fundamental wealth of technical expertise and practical knowledge for Mondadori Retail: a diverse network of professionals, each with their own experience, capable of interpreting the needs and purchasing behaviour of communities and areas that differ greatly from one another.

The ongoing relationship between Mondadori Retail and its network of franchisees is based on a mutual exchange of expertise: on the one hand, the company provides the strength of the brand, high-level training and digital innovation; on the other, franchisees bring value, new ideas and a deep knowledge of local communities, a wealth of relationships built with the people who live in these areas, which grows stronger and is nurtured day after day.

The comment

"Franchising is one of Mondadori Retail's most strategic and distinctive assets. The strength of our model lies in its ability to combine the scale and services of a large national network with the passion, deep local knowledge and entrepreneurial spirit of our female and male franchisees," declares Carmine Perna, Chief Executive Officer of Mondadori Retail. "Our daily relationship with hundreds of booksellers represents an invaluable wealth of expertise and market insight, enabling us to bring culture and books even to places where cultural hubs are limited or absent. We will continue to invest decisively in the development, renewal and, above all, quality of our network, always keeping books, readers and the professionalism of our people at the heart of our project."

This article was translated from the original Italian version with the assistance of artificial intelligence. In case of discrepancies, please refer to the original Italian version.