With its elegant environment and tranquil atmosphere for reading, the Haimen branch of the Phoenix Xinhua Bookstore is one of the outlets in the region to get a Jiangsu's Most Beautiful Bookstore title. [Photo/WeChat account: haimenfabu]

The results of the 2021 selection for Jiangsu's Most Beautiful Bookstore were announced at the opening ceremony of the 11th Jiangsu Book Fair – held on July 7 in Suzhou city, in East Jiangsu province.

Eleven bookstores in the region received the title, three of which were from the city of Nantong. The Haimen branch of the Phoenix Xinhua Bookstore, located in Nantong's Haimen district, was one of them.

The overall environment of the Haimen branch has reportedly much improved since major renovations were carried out. It has held more than 80 activities that have attracted the participation of over 3,000 people, since trial operations of the revamped outlet started on Feb 8.

The favorable reading atmosphere and elegant environment of the remodeled bookstore are said to attract a lot of people to come and check it out and many end up buying books. The average daily flow of people and sales have apparently increased a great deal compared with before.

Bian feifei, manager of the Haimen branch, said that the numbers of people during peak hours in a day can now reach tens of thousands, subsiding to about 5,000 one day at other times.

At present, the average daily sales generate about 100,000 yuan ($15,453), but sales can reach as much as 290,000 yuan on peak days. Literature books, children's books and reference books are proving to be the hot favorites.

Haimen district is now home to two bookstores with a Jiangsu's Most Beautiful Bookstore designation.. The other one, a winner from a previous year, is the Haimen Maisui Bookstore.