When coffee becomes standard in bookstores, how to "drain" reading

■ Xu Yang, reporter of this newspaper

Walking through the streets of Shanghai, through the glass windows of bookstores, the floral patterns on the Western-style century-old coffee bone china cups precipitate the aroma of time; A whole wall of Chinese and foreign book shelves creates a "coffee encyclopedia"... The aroma of books and coffee has become a landscape that highlights the characteristics of Shanghai school and conveys the cultural temperature of the city.

During the annual Shanghai Coffee Culture Week, the series of activities "Shanghai Coffee Fragrance, Full of the World|Shanghai Books, Full of the Earth" was recently held in Shanghai Hong Kong Sanlian Bookstore, and the "80 Western Coffee Ware Special Exhibition in 150 Years" was exhibited at the same time. The Shanghai Book Distribution Industry Association invited <> brand physical bookstores in Shanghai to jointly launch a series of <> activities to create a strong cultural atmosphere of coffee books and polish the "coffee city business card".

When coffee has almost become the standard in new bookstores, how to effectively "drain" reading promotion? Wang Yaohua, vice president and secretary general of the Municipal Book Distribution Industry Association, observed that in recent years, bookstores have become the preferred place for youth group building and community lectures, and a public cultural space loved by citizens. Through the integration of book promotion and coffee business space, and the establishment of coffee take-out business in more than 10 bookstores, the coffee business performance of bookstores has been steadily improved, and the sales of related books have also been diverted, and the spillover effect is obvious.

The pyrotechnic gas blends into the book gas, and the coffee-themed book heats up

As the city with the largest number of cafes in the world, among the many physical bookstores with different characteristics in Shanghai, the new experience of coffee consumption with social and cultural attributes has been integrated into the new scene of reading.

When pyrotechnics are integrated into the book gas, coffee-themed book sales have increased significantly. Shen Xiao, assistant general manager of Shanghai Hong Kong Sanlian Bookstore Co., Ltd., introduced that the store has set up a special shelf area to focus on the promotion of coffee culture theme books, including a series of knowledge from coffee bean identification to extraction, brewing, pulling, tasting, etc., as well as the history of coffee in various countries, how to open coffee shops and other fields, with coffee as the fulcrum, to stimulate the consumption of books, culture and creativity.

The "Shanghai Coffee Fragrance, Full of the World|Shanghai Book Fragrance, Full of Earth" series of activities has driven the sales of "Book + Coffee" by releasing new coffee book lists, designing personalized posters, coffee-themed book fairs, coffee discounts, coffee tasting, barista training, coffee skill competitions, coffee shop rating and other measures.

Most of the books on the list have been published in the past two years, such as "Kaxiang Shuxiang in Shanghai", "Coffee Star Guide", "Coffee in a Cup: A Hobby Soaked in Human Society" and other new books. Among them, Professor Chen Zuen's "Shanghai Coffee: History and Scenery" vividly expounds the diversity and inclusiveness of Shanghai coffee culture from the 1920s to the 1940s with first-hand information, including the exotic flavor of coffee in the West District, the fashion of coffee on Jing'an Temple Road, and the coffee humanistic characteristics of Nanjing Road commercial circle and the north bank of Suzhou River, restoring the variety of coffee culture in Shanghai. "Cafe Signature Drinks" introduces 35 hand-blended base and 100 family drinks; "Cafe Salad 101" uncovers the secrets of café salad deliciousness and expands coffee culture.

Among the 100 coffee utensils presented in the "100 Years and 100 Western Coffee Ware Special Exhibition", fancy bone china is the mainstay, and there are also gold tracing and hand-painting. "Coffee has evolved from a drink that satisfies the appetite to a refined way of living." Ding Shan, president of the Yangtze River Delta Coffee Industry Association, told reporters that many well-known brands made their first concentrated appearance, such as the British royal brand, the world's top ten famous porcelain - Aynsley, Wedgwood, Royal Albert and other exquisite porcelain taste synonymous, are familiar brands for enthusiasts.

Feel the warmth of the "third space", and the aroma of coffee and books conveys the taste of a better life

The industry pointed out that the bookstore + coffee makes the existence value of the bookstore more diverse, the living space is also extended, and there is an additional function in the empowerment of urban public space, creating the social value of the "third space", becoming an extension of the study room, with the style of the living room, the atmosphere of the library, and also the portrayal of the city's "slow life". Reading promotion and coffee culture empower and complement each other, and operating coffee is no longer an accessory of the bookstore, but makes people feel the warmth of the city more, reflecting the creativity and ingenuity of the bookstore.

As more and more coffee brands take root in Shanghai, an inclusive, open and vibrant coffee culture is integrated into Shanghai's DNA. For example, the Municipal Book Distribution Industry Association cooperated with Yunnan Baoshan to promote brand coffee for the first time, and gave readers 80,150 cups of Baoshan small grain coffee through more than 20 participating bookstores; Buy 4 get <> free for <> kinds of drinks in Jiaotong University; Nine Xinhua bookstores under the Xinhua Media chain launched the "Sheik Beer Butter Latte Second Cup Half Price"...

Coffee is the ideal companion for reading, in a bookstore with interesting souls, perhaps only a cup of coffee away. In addition to Huimin discounts, a number of bookstores have also launched a series of coffee culture lectures. Eryou Bookstore and Henderson Xuhui World delivered coffee to white-collar workers in the mall, as well as the "Master Hand-brewed Coffee Experience Course"; Xinhua Cultural Creative Light Space Planning Hand-brewed Coffee Experience Salon and Coffee Reading Sharing; The Reader Bund flagship store will hold an illustration exhibition of "Coffee-like Pets", and will launch on-site hand-drawn illustrations and hand-brewed coffee tasting; The Art Bookstore will hold a "A Little Coffee, A Little Art" coffee tasting experience salon.

Many bookstores "open their brains" to compete for creativity, which greatly enriches the experience of visiting bookstores. Sinan Books has designed and developed specialty drinks based on cold brew coffee and added coffee liqueurs to bring a rich taste experience. China Construction Investment Book Bureau launched the "Biography Cafe Take Coffee to Travel", which departs from the North Bund port and visits four coffee-producing regions around the world through sea routes, including Ethiopia, Brazil, Indonesia and Yunnan, China, to experience different regional cultures in the aroma of books and coffee.