A question of survival

"To be or not to be" is a tough question for brick-and-mortar bookstores and the sudden outbreak of the novel coronavirus has only made it worse.

However, Tong Xingjia is an idealist. No wonder he named his bookstore Utopia. He admits to the difficulties of operating a brick-andmortar bookstore in a small county like Haiyan, where there aren't sufficient readers or people willing to participate in cultural activities, unlike in first-or second-tier cities. "But then, if I didn't open such a bookstore for serious reading and cultural activities in Haiyan, nobody else would have done it," Tong said. "There definitely was the need for one."

He didn't expect the bookstore to make profits and was even prepared to incur losses every year, deciding to keep the bookstore running for as long as he could.

But registering profits is crucial for the survival and development of any business, brick-and-mortar bookstores being no exception. Tong is not sure how long Utopia will survive, particularly after the epidemic.

Mazi's founder was more optimistic about her bookstore's future. "Life will always go on. The economy will recover after the epidemic, and our bookstore will follow its original path to grow in the future," Li said. "As long as Mazi retains its unique character and meets customers' expectations, this online channel will help our bookstore's offline growth."

Wu Qi thinks brick-and-mortar bookstores have a cultural significance, but are comparatively disadvantaged in a society where entertainment and popular culture prevail. "Whether we should and how we could promote books and the reading culture is linked to the country's cultural policy," he said.

Most bookshop owners mentioned the significance of government support in these difficult times. Utopia Bookshop runs from a rented premises in a tony area and the local government stepping in to exempt the store from paying two months' rent has helped the owner "breathe easy" in this income-less phase.

OWSpace and Mazi have applied for government subsidy. And Li Suwan supposes Beijing's brickand-mortar bookstore support fund will help them get through this difficult phase. "Any government subsidy to small and independent bookstores will prove crucial for our survival," Tong said.

"Brick-and-mortar bookstores are the so-called meeting points and public spaces for our society." said Wu. "Such spaces enable face-to-face communication among people, something irreplaceable in the internet age."

"For me, nothing can be more joyful than seeing people reading books here," said Tong.

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