Can someone explain the difference between this and not buying, say, locally made shoes, or clothes, rather than clothes made cheaper somewhere else?
To me it's the same. You're supporting the people for whom you have some affinity by nationality, ethnicity, history, interaction, geography, etc. However, most people (with few exceptions) don't show the same favor for goods one could argue would benefit the local industry and our society (and also be contrarian to globalization) by buying the more expensively produced local or at least American [or native nation(ality) of shopper] goods?
I'm not advocating for either, you do as you choose, but it seems a bit contradictory or maybe people identify more with the bookseller (who is just a middle person) rather then the cobbler or shoemaker, tailor or seamster/seamstress who actually physically make the things themselves.
* They don't trust working conditions abroad; Amazon is 'local'-ish labour too. I'm sure I've read online that their working conditions aren't amazing, but it's not a Bangladeshi garment sweat shop who are paying bribes to the local mafia...
* They worry about the transportation costs on the environment. There's no particular reason to think that your local bookshop would be any better at reducing environmental impact than Amazon
* Means of production and providence are important to people in food products and products made from natural materials - those don't really apply to fungible books that have come from the same producer
* Keeping money locally in the community, with the idea that there will be some kind of trickle-down effect, or collateral benefit (like bookshops having reading events for kids) -- this seems to be the only really applicable part here, and I guess each consumer needs to ask if that's worth the extra cash for them
I understand the why [nice rundown]. What I don't understand so much is why people do this in practice for some kids of goods but not others. It's not as if local shoemakers are having a new golden age [Oak Street, excepted], or knifemakers or garment makers (tailors, seamstresses).
A shoemaker moreover would have more involvement [manufacture] than a mere "merchant" which is what booksellers are.
These other goods you keep comparing it to definitely seem to fall more on the utility side as opposed to the entertainment - possibly art? intellectual?luxury? - side, which I think is a large distinction.
There's a romantic aspect to being in bookstores that just isn't found with stores of other types of merchandise.
People don't flock to knife stores for knife signings. They don't sit down with a cup of coffee inside the knife store with other knife enthusiasts and talk about the latest knife they sharpened. They don't take one knife off the shelf, sit in an overstuffed chair and flip it a few times then put it back and take down another, all with no expectation of purchase or pressure. etc. etc.
I think you might have hit it with the "intellectual" aspect. Which is curious, in some respects because booksellers are mere merchants rather than producers (artists) one might stretch it and say they are curators (but any merchant is a curator).
With regard to knives, there are some people who do sit down and discuss process and knifemaker and tradition, history of a particular blade, provenance, etc. So it does happen. Chefs tend to have favorites. Swordspeople tend to have favorites.
But I have to admit, I think your point about perceived "intellectualism" might have merit (and explains the book part, but not the bookstore part but perhaps it's social aspect of the bookstore as you imply.
Different people romanticize different products. For some people clothes are luxury goods where books are a utility, and for some the reverse. Different people put different importance on different aspects too - Bob may think the environmental impact of his purchases is of first rate importance, but doesn't care about a community forming around his retailers. Jane may not really care about either, but fondly looks back on when her Mom took her to the library as a kid...
To me it's the same. You're supporting the people for whom you have some affinity by nationality, ethnicity, history, interaction, geography, etc. However, most people (with few exceptions) don't show the same favor for goods one could argue would benefit the local industry and our society (and also be contrarian to globalization) by buying the more expensively produced local or at least American [or native nation(ality) of shopper] goods?
I'm not advocating for either, you do as you choose, but it seems a bit contradictory or maybe people identify more with the bookseller (who is just a middle person) rather then the cobbler or shoemaker, tailor or seamster/seamstress who actually physically make the things themselves.