With gorgeous decorations and designs, exquisite cultural and creative products, coffee and board games, all kinds of high-value bookstores are emerging, attracting many consumers to check in, and some have become new cultural landmarks in cities. However, there are also doubts: In these "face-oriented" bookstores, do books still have a meaning? Will they become props for taking photos?
To be fair, the emergence of “Internet-famous bookstore” has adapted to the new consumption trend. In the digital age, facing the impact of the popularization of digital reading, online sales of books, and diversified cultural consumption formats, physical bookstores will indeed have weak revenue and find it difficult to break through if they only focus on selling and borrowing books. Especially now, young consumers are increasingly pursuing a sense of atmosphere. Whether it is full of literary style or a gathering place for trendy play, "bookstore +" provides a unique reading space and social environment. For operators, traffic comes before sales, which is a win-win situation.
Of course, people's concerns about “Internet-famous bookstore” are not unfounded. It is not difficult to find that in many highly praised online posts, the "most worthwhile" bookstores are often recommended as "photo spots", and many customers do "read for two minutes and take photos for two hours", or even just open the book and take a pose. On this side, people are noisy about choosing light and angles, while on the other side, people who really want to read find it difficult to find a quiet corner, and sometimes have to avoid the bookshelves to avoid being photographed. Some bookstores also blindly pursue short-term popularity, or fill the background wall with "decorative books", or only promote catering, which invisibly dilutes the reading atmosphere. In recent years, there are many “Internet-famous bookstore” that have gone from being popular for a while to declining. Facts show that if bookstores simply pursue beauty and fun, ignoring the core competitiveness of "books", they will ultimately not be able to support sustainable development.
Diversified operations are the only way forward, but the underlying logic of bookstore operations is reading and buying books. People are keen to take photos in bookstores to show their attitude towards life. Isn't it because the sense of ritual brought by reading cannot be replaced by other activities? Therefore, we still need to tap the emotional value brought by reading itself. We can pursue the visual effects of spatial layout and book display, but we should also pay attention to the real experience of reading and find a balance in the symbiosis of business and culture. At present, some bookstores specifically distinguish between public reading areas, cultural and creative boutique areas, and check-in areas; some regularly organize cultural activities such as reader meetings and intangible cultural heritage experiences... Meeting diverse needs and not forgetting the cultural core is the key to going from "Internet celebrity" to "long-term popularity".
A good bookstore is a distribution center for good books, and it also carries the surprise of people encountering excellent works, leaving a quiet space for thinking in the hustle and bustle. We hope that more bookstores will take the road of transformation with creativity and live up to the love of readers with sincerity.
