Name

POPULAR Bookstore

Legal name

POPULAR Bookstore

Website

https://popular.com.sg

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

POPULAR Bookstore is a Singapore-based omni-channel retailer selling English and Chinese books, curriculum-aligned assessment books, stationery, gadgets, and snacks through physical stores, a Shopify e-commerce site, a mobile app, a B2B office solutions platform, and the POPCLUB membership program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bookstore and Stationery Retail

NAICS

Book Retailers and News Dealers (4592), Office Supplies and Stationery Retailers (45941)

SIC

Retail-Misc General Merchandise Stores (5399)

akta.pro primary industry

General Bookstores (New Books) (CRALAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Textbooks & Academic Books Retail (CRALAAAC), Children’s Books & Educational Readers Retail (CRALAAAD)

Keywords

• Book retailing
• Educational books
• Stationery supplies
• Consumer electronics retail
• Corporate office supplies

Headquarters

HQ city

Singapore, Singapore

HQ country

Singapore

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Book Sales: Sales of English and Chinese books including fiction, non-fiction, children's books, educational materials, manga, and assessment books for Singapore's education system (PSLE, N Level, O Level, A Level, IGCSE)
2. Stationery Sales: Sales of stationery products including writing instruments, paper, calculators, files, art supplies, and house brand products (POP BAZIC, POP ARTZ)
3. Gadgets & IT Products: Sales of technology products including Apple devices, smartphones, tablets, audio equipment, gaming accessories, computers, e-readers, printers, and accessories
4. Titbits & Snacks: Sales of food products including biscuits, chocolates, candy, crackers, and local delights
5. Corporate/Office Solutions: B2B sales of office supplies and solutions through dedicated corporate sales platform (os.popular.com.sg)
6. Membership Subscriptions: Revenue from membership program providing benefits including 10% storewide discount for members

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

POPULAR Bookstore is a Singapore-based retailer selling English and Chinese books, curriculum-aligned assessment books, stationery, gadgets and IT products, snacks, and house-brand stationery and art supplies. It also supplies office products to corporate customers and operates a paid membership program that provides a 10% storewide discount. Customers can buy through physical stores, the Shopify-based e-commerce storefront, a mobile app, and Office Solutions.

Product overview

POPULAR Bookstore operates as a multi-category retail platform offering books, stationery, technology products, and snacks. The core product portfolio includes Text & Assessment Books for Singapore's educational system (PSLE through A-Level), English Books and Chinese Books for general reading, Stationery supplies, Gadgets & IT products, and Titbits & Snacks. House brands POP BAZIC and POP ARTZ provide value-priced stationery alternatives. The POPCLUB Magazine membership program offers customer engagement and exclusive benefits. The platform functions as a unified e-commerce website with physical retail store presence across Singapore.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• POP BAZIC: House brand for stationery products delivering quality at competitive prices
• POPCLUB
• POP Artz
• Popular

Products and services

• Text & Assessment Books Educational assessment papers, workbooks, textbooks, and exam-preparation materials for students from preschool through secondary and pre-university levels, including resources aligned to Singapore's PSLE, N-Level, O-Level, A-Level, and IGCSE curricula.
• English Books General reading books in English, including fiction, non-fiction, children's books, biographies, memoirs, self-help, professional, lifestyle, and young-adult titles.
• Chinese Books Books in Chinese across categories including fiction, non-fiction, children's books, comics, educational materials, self-improvement, business, finance, computer and IT, reference, and other topics.
• Stationery General school, office, and creative supplies, including pens, markers, paper, calculators, files, organizers, electronics, batteries, toys, games, gifts, and art and craft materials.
• Gadgets & IT Consumer technology products including smartphones, tablets, audio equipment, children's smartwatches, computers, peripherals, data-storage devices, e-readers, gaming accessories, printers, networking products, and software.
• Titbits & Snacks Food and snack products including biscuits, bakery items, beans, nuts, chocolates, candy, crackers, freeze-dried products, beverages, jelly, pudding, lollipops, wafers, and local delights.
• POP BAZIC POPULAR's house-brand line of stationery and school essentials, including files, correction tape, notebooks, and related products offered at value pricing.
• POP ARTZ POPULAR's art-focused house-brand line of creative and artistic stationery products.
• Office Solutions Dedicated B2B offering of office supplies and solutions for corporate and office customers, including procurement of stationery, business essentials, and bulk orders.
• POPULAR Members Membership Paid customer membership providing a 10% storewide discount, with membership management and e-card activation available through POPULAR's retail and digital systems.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Educational Publishing House (EPH)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducational Publishing House is a key publishing partner whose assessment books are prominently featured on POPULAR's website and stores. These include textbooks and educational materials aligned with Singapore's curriculum for various education levels.
• Frasers Property SingaporeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrasers Property Singapore organizes the Retail Spark! awards program, through which a POPULAR Bookstore manager was recognized for outstanding customer service at their White Sands retail location.
• Senior Minister of State Sun XuelingminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSenior Minister of State Sun Xueling participated in a storytelling session at POPULAR Waterway Point, engaging families with her What Ants Do book series and promoting messages of unity, kindness, and nation-building.
• Singapore AuthorsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBeloved Singaporean authors partner with POPULAR Bookstores for book signing events, fan meet-ups, and milestone celebrations such as the SG60 commemorative events.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Amazon: Global e-commerce incumbent operating Amazon.sg; represents the dominant cross-border online competition to POPULAR's e-commerce channel for English books, gadgets, and lower-priced stationery, though without a physical Singapore retail presence.

Regional players

• Naiin: Major Thai bookstore chain operated under the Amarin group offering a comparable mix of Thai/English/Chinese books, stationery, and toys; relevant Southeast Asia comparable for multi-format bookstore economics, though operating primarily in Thailand rather than Singapore.
• National Book Store (Philippines): Philippine bookstore and office-supplies chain with extensive physical footprint; similar business model of combining books, stationery, and school/office supplies, but operating in the Philippines market rather than Singapore.
• Periplus Bookshop: Indonesian bookstore chain with presence across Indonesia and Singapore; comparable in mall-based bookstore retail model and English-language assortment, though geographically concentrated in Indonesia.

Direct peers

• Best Denki: Singapore consumer-electronics and appliance retailer that overlaps directly with POPULAR's Gadgets & IT category (including Apple devices), competing for the same Singapore consumer electronics basket.
• BooksActually: Independent Singapore bookstore known for literary curation and event programming; while smaller in scale, it competes with POPULAR for the English-language fiction, indie, and gift-book segments of the same Singapore reader base.
• Grassroots Book Room: Singapore independent bookstore with strong focus on local-interest, design, and Chinese-language titles; overlaps with POPULAR's Chinese-language and curated general-interest segments and competes for the same local community-event traffic.
• Kinokuniya Bookstores: Japanese-headquartered bookstore chain with a flagship presence in Singapore; competes head-on with POPULAR across English, Japanese, and Chinese books as well as stationery and gift categories, with similar omni-channel and in-store event strategies.
• Times Bookstores (Times-MPH): Established Singapore bookstore chain operating Times and MPH banners; directly comparable in physical retail footprint, general book assortment, and educational/assessment book positioning within Singapore.

Emerging players

• Big Bad Wolf Books: Malaysia-based book-sale organiser operating large-scale discount book fairs across Southeast Asia including Singapore; competes with POPULAR for value-conscious book buyers via episodic, deeply discounted English-language book events rather than a permanent retail footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/PopularBookstoreSingapore
• Instagraminstagram.com/popular_singapore
• TikToktiktok.com/@popularsingapore
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/popular-bookstore

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about POPULAR Bookstore