As per my earlier post on the Singapore Writers Festival which is on-going till tomorrow (12th Nov 2017), I managed to attend one of the pre-selected forum : How Bookstores Can Survive In The Internet Age - 互联网时代，实体书店何去何从 (in Mandarin). This is the first time I attended such forum, so, it's a new leap for me! Yeay!
There was a small hiccup when I try to purchase the ticket online this morning (via Sistic), it keep prompting me as "unavailable". Initially, I thought the event was sold out but my instinct directed me to counter check. After FB Messenging with the SWF personnel, it is confirmed that the event is NOT sold out and I can get the ticket on the spot at the Art House.
Moral of the story? Never take thing at its face value, always, counter confirm!
Being an avid reader myself, books (or any good reading materials) is very important to me. With the invent of the Internet and e-everything, it is a very real disruption to the book/publishing industry, especially the brick and mortar bookstores.
The forum started with the sharing by Singapore's Anthony Koh Waugh (许小丹) on his journey in establishing the Booktique bookstore and reason(s) that lead to its demise in June this year. It is obvious that he is very passionate and serious about reading and importance of books. He is still around in the book business scene and I foresee he will make a come back, better and stronger.
Next up, Chan-Ho-Kei (陈浩基) from Hong Kong shared the current bleak situation of the independent bookstores in Hong Kong, mainly disrupted by the eCommerce where readers can order cheaper books from place like Taiwan. One funny fact I learnt is that they called the independent bookstores as "Second Floor" [二楼], reason being that the rental at the first floor is very expensive, hence, such smaller bookstore can only afford to rent the second floor or higher.
Last but not least, the Japanese author, Ms Yoshii Shinobu (吉井忍) shared the current bookstore situation in Japan. In general, the number of bookstores has been reduced by almost 50% to 12,500 (in 2017) from the peak of 22,000 in 1999. But interestingly, at the same time, the average size of the bookstores have increased from 130+ square meters to 300+ square meters. Also, from a few unique sample bookstores shared by Ms Yoshii Shinobu, the bookstore owners there are way more creative in their "fight" against the internet age. Having said that, Japan has an added advantage (as compared to places like Hong Kong, Taiwan or Singapore): price of the same book is standardized across the world of Japan (online or offline). In short, the threat of eCommerce is somewhat cushioned by this regulatory requirement.
I've learnt quite a bit from this 1.5 hours forum and looking forward to attend more such forums. Last but not least, like to share the following parting vision (of most of the Japanese bookstore owners) shared by Ms Yoshii Shinobu:
".........能让大家把从没想到过的书拿在手里"
"..... holding on to a book that you never knew it exists"
Afterwords: Personally, I viewed that bookstores will still be around for at least the foreseeable future. However, to survive in the current harsh environment, the owners need to incorporate a lot more creativity in generating new elements (value added services/programs) to differentiate themselves. I think a lot can be learnt from the Japan counterparts!
Cheers!
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