Taiwanese chain Eslite Bookstore (誠品書局) yesterday said that its landmark 24-hour outlet on Taipei’s Dunhua S Road is to close on May 31 next year as its lease draws to an end.
The bookstore chain, which operates 49 branches at home and abroad, is seeking another location to offer 24-hour services and would make details public in April, channel business group senior director Lynn Chang (張曉玲) said.
The Dunhua outlet was opened in 1989 and became a 24-hour operation in 1995, making it a trendy and popular hangout and reading venue in Taipei.
Photo: CNA
Peak business hours are from 6pm to 10pm, followed by 10pm to 2am, the chain said.
The building’s ownership changed hands in 2014 after Shin Kong Life Insurance Co (新光人壽) sold it to Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) a year earlier.
The 35-year-old, 12-story building is to be transformed into a 28-story tower with more than 20,000 ping (66,116m2) of retail, financial and dining spaces, Cathay Financial said.
As a result, rents could rise significantly after regeneration, market observers said.
The bookstore is inviting its 2 million members to take part in a series of campaigns featuring exhibitions and sales of its special collections until the final day.
Media reports have speculated that Eslite is mulling whether to make its Xinyi District (信義) outlet or Zhongshan District (中山) outlet the next 24-hour bookstore.
Chang declined to speculate on the location or timing before the group reaches a consensus.
The bookstore chain is the main source of income for Eslite Spectrum Corp (誠品生活), a Taipei Exchange-listed subsidiary of Eslite Group (誠品集團), whose business interests include department store operations and management; trading of appliances and equipment for hotels, restaurants and kitchens; food retail; and wine cellar and restaurant operations.
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