Only a couple of years ago the news seemed to be full of stories of how bookstores in China were having to close due to fierce competition from e-commerce and rising rents. But that might be "yesterday's news" as brick-and-mortar bookstores in China seem to be staging an incredible comeback.

“The key is to cooperate with commercial properties, like shopping malls. Most of our stores are located inside a mall. “says Ariel Hu, the manager of one of the most popular bookstores in Beijing, “and it's a win-win strategy because on the one hand, commercial estate developers want to go hand in hand with the culture industry, and bookstores can keep customers in their malls for a longer period of time. On the other hand, we get a lower rent from working with them. For example, our rent accounts for about 10 percent of our sales volume.”

But location alone does not explain their popularity. Great service is another reason pulling people in. Like all the trendy bookstores in Beijing, this bookstore includes a well-designed cafe, with a size of almost one-fifth the entire store. Readers browse the store before entering the cafe with a book, which they probably haven't decided whether they want to buy or not, sip a cup of coffee and enjoy the relaxing time.

But how long will this trend last? “Despite the heat at the moment, we believe there is still a lot of potential in nurturing the book market because Chinese people in general do not spend that much time in bookstores. Especially in second and third-tier cities, we see a huge demand among readers for an experience at brick-and-mortar bookstores. So those are the areas where we believe there is still room to grow.”