Bookfair Ends With Thinner Crowds, Less Sales

The annual Book Fair at the Convention and Exhibition Centre came to a close on Tuesday, with booksellers and visitors alike saying the crowd this year has been significantly thinner.

Despite the last-minute discounts and deals, some stores told RTHK that there have been fewer visitors and customers this year compared to the previous years, and that was especially noticeable over the weekend.

The stores, as well as some book-lovers, said it could be because of the ongoing anti-extradition protests.

One firm that took part in the fair said its business has dropped by at least 20 percent this year compared to the year before.

A book-lover said she used to stand in line for a long time to get in, but not this year.

She said thinner crowds may be because people aren't really in the mood for reading because of political atmosphere recently, and would rather go to protests.

Another said people might be scared that they could be affected if anti-extradition protesters staged their actions at the venue or nearby.

But some publishers said there was an uptick in the sales of political books.

One participant said this can be due to the political events over the past two months and also because it’s the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre.