Bookstore field trips: part 2

Today I gave myself a day off, so I went to what's supposedly the mecca for books in Shanghai - Fuzhou Road. There are a bunch of bookstores here, including the iconic Shanghai Book City (上海书城) and the Foreign Languages Bookstore (外文书店). Government-backed and ostensibly with goals that go beyond just turning a profit, these bookstores may have the budget or the audacity to do something innovative. Or so I thought.

Reality proved to be somewhat different. What follows are my thoughts after having visited the aforementioned two spots.

Shanghai Book City

From the perspective of a foreigner, this seven-floor behemoth of a bookstore was a major disappointment. There is indeed an "imported books" section, but it's on the top floor in a dimly-lit section. I can't imagine that expats would visit a place like this, and indeed none of the few patrons browsing the section were visibly non-Chinese. That said, as I rode the escalators back down to the first floor, I passed by a white kid on his way up, with father talking impatiently on the phone in tow. Perhaps there's a sliver of hope there.

Sadly, I think there's not much to be learned from this place. The decorations seem utilitarian and in a style that was popular perhaps two decades ago. One bright spot was that about half of the people in the bookstore were kids - though I noted somewhat regrettably that they were mostly browsing education-related sections full of textbooks and study aids.

There were few places to sit down and read. Many adults were sitting on the floor using their mobile phones, and some more elderly patrons were nodding off as they perhaps waited for their grandchildren.

Foreign Languages Bookstore

This place was significantly better. Part of the first floor actually looked somewhat like a bookstore one would find in a western city such as Vancouver or London. There was a display near the entrance with new releases and popular titles such as Educated and China Rich Girlfriend (the sequel to Crazy Rich Asians). A full two bookcases were devoted to the Harry Potter series in various forms (paperback, hardcover, boxed set), and another two were devoted to GRRM's Game of Thrones series.

There were also some classics that I personally have on my to-read list: fiction such as Foundation, Dune, and Six of Crows; and even some net-famous stuff such Everything is F*cked by Mark Manson.

Everything was slightly too expensive though, consistently selling for slightly over the MSRP when accounting for the exchange rate. For example, Principles by Ray Dalio is 210RMB, which is a bit higher than the $30 MSRP (though I suppose it might even out if we add a sales tax). Regardless, each item was significantly more expensive than what we might be able to get it for online. Case in point - I could buy an original English copy of Principles on JD.com for 148-165RMB.

The cafe here was a depressing sight; it's a holiday, and yet it wasn't open. The tables were empty, with no one choosing to sit there to read despite there being a complete lack of seats elsewhere in the bookstore. Also, aside from the first floor, the 2nd, 3rd and 4th floors did not cater to regular adult readers. The 2nd floor was primarily English textbooks, the 3rd floor was all art/photography books, and the 4th floor was half children's area and half teenger-oriented Japanese manga-land.

Still, with all that said, this Foreign Language Bookstore had by far the most English books out of any bookstore I've been to so far in Shanghai.

Conclusions

It's telling that I've been to so many bookstores in recent days, and I actually can't tell you where the checkout/cashier is for any of the bookstores (with the exception of 多抓鱼, because I bought a picture book there). People don't buy books in a store, so lines never form at the checkout counter. I think the truth is that without government backing, a business that aims to make a profit primarily through selling books will always fail in this day and age.

I was simultaneously saddened and heartened to find that the existing options for English readers in Shanghai are so unattractive. It means that there's an opportunity to build something that expats can truly love. The challenge - as always - is to figure out a business model that actually captures enough of the value created by such a venture.