DE SUS DEDUCCIONES

The first theme that Eslite executives talk about in order for the consumers “to experience the beauty of reading and the fun of life” is “to propagate reading, not to sell books”. The theme seems the opposite of the common idea about bookstores, which are regarded as stores where books are sold. As places for retail business, transactions and profits are the ultimate concerns of booksellers. However, the idea of earning money as primary function seems not to apply to Eslite bookstores. Unlike conventional book-retailers, “Eslite does not sell books; what Eslite really does is propagate reading,” the founder of Eslite, WU Ching-Yu has said (Chen, 2005a, Hong, 1998, Huang, 1998). This is because Mr Wu believes reading makes “people comprehend the true, the good, and the beautiful” (Chen, 2005c). Hence, running bookstores is considered by Mr Wu as a way to contribute to society (Xiao, 2002, Xu, 2005b). It seems that Eslite has placed the focus of its business outside the sphere of selling books and designated itself a unique social-cum-cultural task. To put it simply, Eslite has been de-commercialising itself. The expression of its devotion to a social and cultural assignment has been shown not only in talks with mass media but also in interviews carried out by researchers. The director of the public relations department

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of Eslite, CHEN Shu-Jen, commented that “our major and constant job is to promote reading” when she gave me a brief introduction to Eslite bookstores at the start of an interview conducted as part of this research (Chen, Interview, August, 2006). What Ms Chen said correspond with Mr Wu’s comments to journalists. Accordingly, “Eslite bookstores are to propagate reading rather than selling books” is one of the most important massages that Eslite wants to convey to the public. The message shows that Eslite intends to be a different kind of bookseller.

However, propagating reading and making people experience the beauty of reading can be a complicated task, especially in Taiwan. One of the major difficulties that Eslite has faced in the journey of promoting reading is that the Taiwanese tend to regard reading as a disagreeable activity. The senior regional manager, YEH Ching-Hua, told me that “many people only do their reading to prepare for school examinations, to grant licences, and to pass work evaluations” due to the credentialism in Taiwan (Yeh, Interview, August, 2006). Credentialism refers to the overemphasis placing on one’s credentials; academic achievements are considered synonymous with social success. In societies where credentialism is popular, such as Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore, people generally believe that holding higher academic degrees or professional licenses is the only way to achieve a better life (see Zeng, 1999). In order to pass examinations amidst fierce competition, the majority of people spend a huge amount of their spare time reading textbooks or books related to their examinations and assessments. Other reading material is considered a waste of time. In this sense, reading is not an enjoyable leisure activity, and time spent on other types of reading material is limited. The situation is well-recognised by Eslite, and the managers want to bring about a change in the situation. For Ms Yeh,

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we want to break the connect between books and examinations that many people have in their winds. We want to make a connection between reading and fun and to inspire people to read more. (Yeh, Interview, August, 2006)

Another major difficulty that Eslite faces is that reading is not concerned with the basic necessities of life. For some people, books are a uniquely portable magic, the key to the wide world, but for others, books are just printed work offering information, imaginative narration, opinions, or conjectures upon facts and realities. “One doesn’t need books to survive and we understand that”, Ms Yeh said. “But we want to let people understand the beauty of reading because reading makes us appreciate the world better and gives us the wisdom to face our lives” (Yeh, Interview, August, 2006).

This understanding of how reading is important makes Eslite devote itself to promoting reading. For this reason, “Eslite wants to help people build up the habit of reading in their everyday life” (Yeh, Interview, August, 2006).

Not only popular fiction can be found in Eslite bookstores, but also professional and specialised subjects. Moreover, seats for readers and proper lighting are installed in Eslite bookstores, encouraging visitors to spend time browsing or reading books. In fact, the friendly and convenient environment for reading seems to function in the way Eslite Corporation plans as a considerable number of people like to spend their leisure time reading in Eslite bookstores (Xiao, 2002, Yang, 2005a, Yu and Yang, 2005). The strategies and the design of the physical space will be discussed in detail later, but here I want to emphasise that through broadcasting the notion that ‘Eslite bookstores are to propagate reading, not to sell books’ the Eslite Corporation assigns its bookstores a new role that makes Eslite bookstores different from its competitors. The discourse and actions of de-commercialisation diminishes the focus on business transactions, and at the same time, motivates the imagination as to what bookstores can be. On that

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account, the general business concerns which conventional bookstores have are hardly learnt from Eslite Corporation in public media. For instance, it is difficult to see any news of Eslite bookstores in terms of choosing the right products (which books can make good sale), the ways to sell products effectively (how to promote books for more profit), or business strategies to compete with other retailers (how to increase turnover). Instead, how bookstores should make consumers feel in certain ways is one of the most common topics that Eslite Corporation has talked about, with the idea of propagating reading. For example, Eslite bookstores have to make consumers “relaxed and feel at ease” and “feel calm and peaceful” so that “consumers can more easily immerse themselves in reading” (Dai, 2005). The talks from Eslite Corporation therefore highlight the feelings that consumers would have when in Eslite bookstores.

It is clear to see that Eslite bookstores are conceptualised as places for reading, not for selling books. Therefore the experience that Eslite experiencescapes aim to offer is not a good experience of buying books, but of enjoying reading.