From Mic funds for young booksellers: 4 million for the openings of the 'under 35'
Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli signed the decree allocating resources to the opening of bookshops run by under-35s
Establish new bookshops led by young people up to 35 years old. And if possible, establish them where there are none or no longer any.
Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli has signed the decree allocating 4 million euro to the opening of bookshops run by young people under 35, with a special focus on inland, disadvantaged areas or those with no book sales outlets. This is one of the flagship measures of the Olivetti Plan for Culture, the strategy with which the government wants to bring culture - and with it the presence of the State - back to the most forgotten territories.
Each new bookshop will be able to count on a non-repayable grant of up to 24,000 euro, plus a small but symbolic bonus of 1,000 euro for training and tutoring courses. The objective: to support those who decide to bet on a profession that is both a business and a civil mission.
Behind the numbers, however, there is a country's idea: that of a network of independent bookshops as cultural garrisons, meeting and exchange places, often more lively than official libraries or cultural centres dropped from above. "It is a concrete signal in support of the book supply chain," comments Paolo Ambrosini, president of Ali Confcommercio, who welcomes the decree. "Helping those who take books where there are none has always been the objective of our Scuola Librai Italiani.
The measure, contained in Ministerial Decree 383 of 27 October 2025, comes at a crucial time: the Italian publishing industry is having to deal with a contraction in sales and a generational change that is struggling to take off. Many young booksellers are entering the market without networks or capital, often with projects that mix culture, literary cafés and neighbourhood socialising.
