bookstore heaven

Yes, yes, and yes again!
My absolute favorite place on the Asia tour I had joined was one of their branches. Such a calm, inviting place, complete with a melty bead station for kids.

With bookstores closing left, right and centre, shop owners have tried a range of gimmicks to bring the customers back.

There have been efforts to build community through bookswaps, community events, and personalisation. Others have cut overheads by creating pop-up bookstores which have removed the “store” part completely.

But opening for 24 hours and adopting a “read as long as you want without having to buy” policy? That’d never work. Except for the time that it totally did.

Taiwan’s Eslite Bookstore is a bookstore chain that is not only keeping the digital wolves at bay but is actually flourishing. It has 48 branches throughout Taiwan, Hong Kong,, and China, with its flagship Taipei store the first to adopt a 24-hour opening policy.

Since then, it has gone on to become one of Taiwan’s most popular night spots, beating out late-night competitors such as karaoke bars, nightclubs, and bed.The busiest time at Eslite’s 24-hour store is between 10pm and 2am, with each and every customer deep into whatever they were reading without the threat of having to pretend they were just perusing the book the whole time.

It’s welcome news for those of us who are tired of judging stares and sour looks when we settle in for the long haul, but how does the store keep profitable?

Eslite is not just a for-profit public library, it also has a wine cellar, teashops, clothing stores, cafes and restaurant options. It further serves as an art hub, with frequent music and dance performances, along with film screenings and even cooking shows.

The store has achieved worldwide acclaim, with a recent story in The Guardian identifying Eslite as one of the city’s must-see tourist attractions.

And with the largest selection of English publications and translation material in Taiwan, it is becoming popular with travellers from across the globe.

via {lost at e minor}