Physical Bookstore: Perseverance and Rebirth in Dilemma

One of the words in Dickens's A Tale of Two Cities is "This is a good time, this is a bad time." For today's physical bookstores, the same applies to such a description.

The impact of e-commerce and the change of reading habits, the physical bookstore's decline is more and more obvious, the loss of a large number of guests, making the bookstore face the dilemma of getting deserted or even closed. It is the spring of March, in this season full of flowers, you can read the spring, you can read. A few days ago, the reporter visited various local bookstores and found that after a period of difficult exploration, the bookstore operators have completed the self-upgrading of the format and returned to our vision. It is already "three days to be treated with enthusiasm." Just when we buy a book with a mobile phone or hold an e-reader, they are still exploring the future of the physical bookstore.

Bookstore sleepy

Traditional bookstores are harder year after year

1 Operator: Zhang Binglin (bookstore owner)

Opinion: "The business situation is not ideal, many of my peers have changed."

In the searchable records, we found that in 2012, the Qingyuan Bookstore on Baiyuan Road was closed. The gravitational bookstore that had been in business for many years in 2014 also came to the end of the news... This is a case that can be found around us. In fact, there are data showing that as early as 2011, 50% of physical bookstores went out of business nationwide.

"This bookstore has been open for 15 years. Five years ago, I began to feel that it was difficult to do it one year." On March 14, the reporter came to Huangpi Town under the recommendation of the Zhongshan Publications Association. Suichang Bookstore. At 10 o'clock in the morning, the person in charge, Zhang Binglin, and the two staff members sat in the big bookstore, and the atmosphere was very lonely. In this bookstore with an area of ​​about 700 square meters, there is a small area on the right side that houses audio-visual goods, as well as a small number of toys and stationery. A nearly 400-square-meter open bookcase area is full of books. If you look closely, you will find that most of the books are of interest to students.

When it comes to the current business situation, Zhang Binglin also has no swear words. "Now it mainly deals with some supplementary books, extracurricular reading books, and a small number of literary books." In the nearly two hours of the interview, there was not one in the bookstore. The guests. "There are fewer staff members now, plus I have a total of six people. The business situation is not ideal, and it can only save costs." According to him, due to the large area, plus the purchase channel of Xinhua Bookstore, the bookstore The variety of books is very good, and it is a well-maintained physical bookstore in the township bookstore. “Sometimes we will communicate with our peers, and many of our peers have changed. The cultural atmosphere of the township is average, and many people now buy books online. The status quo can be imagined.”

The relevant person in charge of the Press and Publications Section of the Municipal Wenguang New Bureau told the reporter that in fact, the total number of newsstands and physical bookstores in Zhongshan has remained at around 500 in recent years. He believes that the development of the Zhongshan book industry has always followed the pattern of a composite format. The township bookstore itself has a small base, which mainly meets the needs of the town's teaching assistants and extracurricular reading class “just need”, and more adopts the “book+” marketing model. The profit of other formats can cover the small profits of book sales, and the living conditions are still Can be maintained. Several closed bookstores in the city, and later people have taken over, or transformed into a multi-format, allowing the bookstore to continue to operate.

2 Operator: Liang Yashou (book supplier)

Opinion: "The profit is thin, the expenses are large, and it is harder to do physical bookstore than imagined."

“It’s harder to do a physical bookstore than I thought.” General Manager Liang Yashou of Beijing Shusheng Feiyang Technology Co., Ltd. said in an interview. In 2016, Liang Yashou, who has been engaged in book distribution in Beijing for nearly 20 years, participated in the Zhongshan Book Fair. “The effect of the book fair was still very good. Later, we also pursued a sales exhibition in Lihe Square for more than half a year, and the effect was very good.” Therefore, thinking about Liang Yashou, who is further based in Zhongshan, with an optimistic estimate of the market and his understanding of the industry, as well as his confidence in book resources, he opened a physical store in Zhongshan. “We have been a supplier of national primary and secondary schools, universities, public libraries and bookstores, providing a full range of services, and resources have always been our advantage.”

In March 2017, he built a 700-square-meter Heyue Bookstore on the 4th floor of Leehom Square, using the popular “experience store” model. Entering a large shopping mall, attracting customers with the power generated by overwhelming commodity capacity, reflecting the existence value of the bookstore through a large and comprehensive supply, while also adding comfort to customers in shopping, providing comfortable reading. The area is not only readable, but also enjoys casual drinks and makes the purchase process as enjoyable as possible. But in the end, the store closed before July 20, 2017. "There is no cruelty to the market. The cost of opening a physical store is too great. We can't sustain the loss." Liang Yashou said that he later took the team back to the role of supplier. Under the impact of the business, the profits of the retail book market have been very thin, and the cost of physical stores in terms of labor, renting, etc. is very high, and the expenses are much higher than the income."

It is understood that in the traditional book sales system, the profit earned by a bookstore from a book is 20% to 30%, but this does not count the operating costs of the bookstore. Before the bookstore profited from it, the cost of a book first accounted for 40% of the retail price. The publisher would earn 20% to 30% of the gross profit from the first, and the remaining 5% to 10% would be the profit earned by the wholesaler. The rest is owned by the bookstore.

"In fact, online bookstores do not make money. E-commerce online competition is the price, but the big e-commerce has a large amount of funds as a backing. This is why the physical bookstore can not fight." Liang Yashou said that the original book industry profits Thin, low-priced vicious competition of e-commerce makes the situation of physical bookstores more difficult.

Thought

Three major directions of innovation management

Carefully combing the innovative model of physical bookstores in the market, we will find that increasing the “experience” of the scene and enhancing the “experience” is the place where the operators have made great efforts to improve.

At present, the direction of physical bookstore innovation is roughly divided into three aspects. One is to conduct diversified business in the form of “bookstore+”, or we can call it “Eslite mode”, which is good at integrating non-book business into books. In the marketing, increase the choice of consumers, create more profit margins to maintain the development of the book industry; second, focus on the design of various activities around the book, through the cultivation of mind, guide reading, create a cultural atmosphere, Exploring the role of social media for reading, etc., to “experience” consumption against “online low prices” of e-commerce, increasing customer viscosity and increasing customer repurchase rate; and the third direction is the discovery of sub-divisions. We found that some independent small bookstores that are “special”, “fine” and “special” began to sprout in the market. Although they can’t be called “the fire of the stars”, they are attracting professionalism in the city. The readership of the fan or fan type is still precious.

Voice of the reader

Need a more recommended and guiding reading place

"I think that many bookstores that are beautifully decorated now only provide a place for literary art. It is not suitable for people who really love books to buy books and read books there," said Miss Yang, a bookworm. She believes that the development of bookstores will develop into the form of boutiques. "The carrier of reading has also undergone changes with the transformation of technology. Paper books are no longer the only source of knowledge acquisition. People will need a huge knowledge base in the future. It is more recommended or guided reading."

The former media person Chu Feng is also a standard "bookworm". Online shopping and offline bookstores are the two ways for her to buy books. "The book selected by a bookstore is actually related to the temperament of the operator." According to her Describe, he once found a book in a so-called big bookstore in the city. "Space, good environment, good design, but the form is bigger than the content, the selected books can not enter the heart." She said I believe that her experience will resonate with many people who love books. Many bookstores with "magnificent appearances" can't excite people's desire to buy books. "However, I recently found several books about nature in the Wilderness Library and bought them with joy."

Her description of the ideal bookstore is: convenient transportation, can provide public space with aesthetic value, and has its own unique atmosphere. "Here we have to find people and books that are in harmony with ourselves," she said.

The "myths" of the two bookworms on the bookstore also brought us a reflection on the growing physical bookstores in the market and the physical bookstores with more and more diverse forms. There is a saying in "Hua Yan Jing" that "do not forget the original heart, and always have it", and this is exactly the case. In the city, there will be such a "72-hour bookstore" and "wild-wild library" to serve the "individual" people. "Independent" bookstore. But without exception, these bookstores exist in the form of “public interest”. Their profitability is not enough to support daily maintenance. The reason why they survived was mostly the enthusiasm of the founders and the support of fans.

Reporter's notes:

After interviewing Zhang Binglin of the Shuchang Bookstore, his words made me particularly moved: "For my readers, Suichang is part of the memory. Many of my readers are moms and dads who bought books from me when they were young. The children came to me to buy books. I believe that the situation of physical bookstores will slowly improve after five years, people always need to read."

When interviewing Chu Feng, she also told me a little story. In the Yellowstone National Park in the United States, she encountered rare snow in September and was forced to find a place to avoid snow. "I found a bookstore, the door was open, and it was very warm to walk in. I thought that it was a wonderful thing to meet such a thoughtful bookstore in life."

After the Dickens famous sentence at the beginning of this article, there are still a few words: "This is the period of faith, this is the period of doubt; this is the season of light, this is the season of darkness; this is the spring of hope, this is the winter of disappointment. "No matter how the situation of the physical bookstore industry is going against the water, I think that as long as the demand is still there, someone will stick to it."

The road to breaking

Innovate business content and models, and create a sense of “experience” in bookstores

The example opens self-exploration, and some bookstores in Zhongshan break through the transformation.

The "e-commerce" has a huge impact on retail physical stores. Under such an attack, it will not be "smashed", only playing the spirit of 120,000 times to fight.

After several years of self-exploration, the physical bookstore has undergone self-transformation and evolution, and the new bookstores have begun to enter our field of vision. The personalized, multi-format composite and boutique chain store models have emerged slowly, breaking the stereotype of the previous “one thousand stores”. From a national perspective, such as Eslite, Fangsuo, Nanjing Pioneer Bookstore, Beijing Old Bookworm Bookstore, Sixifu Bookstore, Yanjiu Bookstore, 1200bookshop and other physical bookstores, or pass on life aesthetics, or adhere to individual design, or Lock consumers with emotions.

“The essence of retail is still cost, efficiency and experience.” This phrase is regarded as a standard in the industry, and is particularly convincing in the self-iteration of bookstores. At our side, people who are interested will find that several major bookstores in Zhongshan have begun to start from the space design layout, business content and business model, from increasing the "experience", breaking the "single" scene, increasing the "customer viscosity", etc. The front is to carry out the difficult self-innovation and the "savings of the rescue", and create a way of life in the "difficult" reality.

“We will host famous artists to participate in campus activities, and we will also join hands with the school to create a scholarly campus.” The Sogou Bookstore, which opened on the third floor of Yihua Department Store, started its own way by increasing the interaction of the scenes and increasing the viscosity of customers through mental cultivation. The road to “upgrade” under the new consumption pattern. Lu Ling, the person in charge, said that he would provide readers with a variety of services such as book bar, coffee bar, parent-child reading area, book exchange meeting, hand-made production, robot making, and full set of desk supplies in the bookstore. The event also uses its own space advantages to provide scene services for various parties, book meetings, conferences, etc.

The Xinhua Group's four-reading bookstore opened in Daxinyi Caihui also broke the original single pattern with five major functional areas, such as book boutique area, parent-child reading area, cultural and leisure interaction area, art training area and light meal area. In the more contemporary style of "literary arts."

The Boya Bookstore opened in the Holiday Plaza is one of the bookstores in the early transformation of Zhongshan. It has become a composite bookstore for “book retail + training + cultural creation products”.

The think-and-see education city, which is based on “education and training + teaching assistant books retailing”, has opened up another segment of book retailing.

"Online and offline integration" is the trend of the times

Expert voice Chen Haiquan

Professor, Doctoral Supervisor, Department of Marketing, Jinan University

In view of the development path of physical bookstores, Chen Haiquan believes that the omni-channel model of online and offline integration is the general trend of bookstore development, and sales of books + integrated services will become a new trend in the development of physical bookstores.

In recent years, book e-commerce giants have moved from online to offline, launched physical stores, changing the business structure and profit model of traditional physical bookstores. For example, Dangdang has more than 100 physical bookstores and a large-scale expansion plan; Jingdong has launched the “Thousands of Thousands of Stores Book Corner” program, which has been opened in Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, Shenzhen, Changsha and other cities... The e-commerce giant has strengthened its experience in the book market by opening offline stores to consolidate its market share.

The physical bookstore is an important experience space for people to experience spiritual consumption. Consumers no longer enter the bookstore for a single book purchase, and the experience of the bookstore and integrated services will become the main purpose of entering the store. With the book as the medium, the physical bookstore will transform into a complex cultural experience space; by embracing the Internet, high-tech and other elements, online and offline integration and development, to meet the reader's multi-level, diverse reading needs.