Book fair vendors have final shot at boosting sales
Exhibitors at the book fair offer discounts and special promotions to boost sales. Photo: RTHK
Many booklovers flocked to the fair to find bargains. Photo: RTHK
Exhibitors at the Hong Kong Book Fair made a last-ditch effort to boost sales on Tuesday, offering additional discounts and promotions on the final day of the annual event.
The fair, held alongside the World of Snacks fair and the Sports and Leisure Expo at the Convention and Exhibition Centre, didn't open on Sunday when Typhoon Wipha skirted past the city.
Alva Au, director of Cosmos Books, said the publisher was offering special offers on certain books to try to make up for the business disruption over the weekend.
'Our business has been greatly affected by the typhoon. Saturday and Sunday are [traditionally] the two days with the best sales at the book fair. And I don't think we can make up for the loss on the Sunday. I think it's about a 20 to 30 percent [drop in business],' she said.
'In the beginning, we offered 20 percent off. And today, we selected some special books and can offer 30 percent off. We hope it can attract more people.'
To boost sales, major publishers like Commercial Press, Chung Hwa Book and Ming Pao also slashed prices on selected books, to as low as HK$10 each.
There were also special offers like "HK$100 for 10 books" and extra discounts for more purchases, as vendors tried to sell as many books as they could.
The fair was fairly quiet in the morning, but crowds of people started flocking there in the afternoon looking for bargains.
A visitor surnamed Kwok planned to spend about HK$1,000.
'I came a few days ago and I had a great experience. I came back to find some discounted books,' she said.
Another bookworm, a woman surnamed Yu returned to the fair with her son after going alone last week.
'The discounts today are much larger compared to last time,' she said.
'I returned to the same publisher to make purchases. Previously, they offered about 20 to 30 percent off, but this time it's up to 60 percent off. I'm buying books that were previously only on my wish list or under consideration. I have a budget of about HK$2,000 to HK$3,000 today.'
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