32nd HKTDC Hong Kong Book Fair attracts 850,000 visitors
SIBEYSTORE | 850,000 people attend the 32nd Hong Kong Book Fair. | HONG KONG (via ACN Newswire) – Three large exhibitions have been a huge success, and there will be more events in the future. Today marked the successful conclusion of three events that were all organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), namely the 32nd HKTDC Hong Kong Book Fair, the 5th HKTDC Sports and Leisure Expo, and the 2nd HKTDC World of Snacks. The seven-day Book Fair and associated events were the first large-scale event to take place in 2022. Together, they brought together more than 700 exhibitors who provided customers with a wide variety of things to choose from, including books, products for sports and leisure, and snacks. The three events brought in a total of 850,000 visitors, who spent an average of HK$879.00 each person while they were there. The enormous success of the concurrent fairs is a good sign for the next exhibition series that will be held by the HKTDC.
Keen participation in diverse range of cultural activities and seminars
This year’s Book Fair is one of the events celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). Sophia Chong, Deputy Executive Director of the HKTDC, said: “We are very grateful to all our exhibitors and visitors for their support for the Book Fair, the Sports and Leisure Expo and World of Snacks. Some visitors even brought their whole family along! Under the theme of the year, ‘History and City Literature’, visitors showed great interest in related books, particularly cultural topics such as the history of the Forbidden City. Visitors also participated in various cultural events, seminars and recreational experiences. The HKTDC will continue to work with our Cultural Events Advisory Panel to bring even more diversity to the Book Fair in order to promote reading and cultural exchange more comprehensively. We look forward to our twin jewellery shows and Simply Shopping Fest, opening on 29 July, which will boost local consumption and introduce more business opportunities for exhibitors.”
Exhibitors at the Book Fair said, echoing the comments made by Ms. Chong, that books related to this year’s theme were among the best-selling genres at the event. These exhibitors said that books on topics such as the history of the Forbidden City, which enabled readers to get a better understanding of China’s past, were among the most popular titles in this category. While this was going on, publications about health and self-improvement, as well as books for children, were quite popular and brought in a lot of money.
Fiction, literature, comics, travel and children’s book revealed as most popular genres
The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) commissioned a research institution to conduct interviews with over 800 attendees of the Book Fair to gain insight into the visitors’ spending and reading habits. According to the results of the survey, the average amount spent at this year’s fair was HK$879, which represents an increase from the previous year (when respondents spent an average of HK$817 at the fair), as well as accounting for 71 percent of respondents’ average annual expenditure on printed books (HK$1,238) This illustrates that the Book Fair continues to serve as a vital venue for community members to gain access to high-quality reading materials. The majority of respondents who went to the Book Fair had the intention of purchasing children’s books (15 percent), while 41 percent came for the book discounts, 17 percent went for the variety of cultural activities, and the majority of respondents who went to the Book Fair had the intention of purchasing new releases (82 percent).
The study also showed the reading habits and preferences of those who attended, with 95 percent of respondents indicating that they had read printed books within the previous month and spending an average of 19 hours per week reading. Fiction was by far the most popular type of book, accounting for 57 percent of all sales, followed by literature (25 percent), comics (21 percent), travel (18 percent), and children’s books (17 percent ). Books on languages, supplemental exercises, self-improvement, history, and biographies were other very popular types of literature. More than sixty-five percent of those who participated in the poll had read electronic books within the previous month, and they had spent an average of nineteen hours doing so.
57% of respondents use electronic payment methods
It is possible that the epidemic played a role in the fact that 57 percent of respondents completed their payments using non-cash methods like as credit cards and Octopus cards, which is an increase from the 49 percent who did so the previous year. The crowd control procedures at the fairs were assessed favorably by the attendees, with 89 percent of visitors expressing satisfaction with the crowd control measures and 90 percent expressing pleasure with the new Octopus payment admittance arrangements. The majority of survey respondents (89 percent) agreed that preventative measures, such as temperature checkpoints and hand-sanitizing facilities, were necessary to protect the health and safety of both the exhibitors and the attendees of the event. When attending the fairs, attendees reported feeling less anxious as a direct result of the steps taken by the HKTDC.
Exhibitions, seminars and more to continue in Cultural July
This year, the HKTDC organised more than 600 seminars and cultural activities, including the theme of the year “Reading the World: Stories of Hong Kong” seminar series, “History and City Literature”, “Renowned Writers”, “English and International Reading”, “World of Knowledge”, “Children and Youth Reading”, “Lifestyle”, “Hong Kong Cultural and Historical”, and “Personal Development and Spiritual Growth”. Together with the “Cultural July – Summer of Reading” campaign held in various districts since late June, the estimated number of participants for the various activities exceeded 320,000. Some of the seminars in the “Renowned Writers” seminar series were broadcast online in collaboration with Sina Weibo, allowing book lovers outside Hong Kong to participate virtually.
Recordings of selected seminars are available online. Readers can revisit them through the Book Fair website or via the HKTDC’s online video channels. The Cultural July citywide campaign continues until the end of this month with a broad range of activities including art and cultural tours, exhibitions and seminars. For details, please visit the Cultural July website at http://www.hkbookfair.hktdc.
Sports and Leisure Expo and World of Snacks were well received
Both the Hong Kong Sports and Leisure Expo and the World of Snacks came to a close today. The Hong Kong Sports and Leisure Expo included a vast array of items and services related to sports and leisure, in addition to more than 1,200 delectable snacks and snack workshops. While the latter gave guests the opportunity to buy snacks from all over the world and prepare their own snacks, the former featured a variety of trials and interactive experiences for guests to participate in. Both events received a significant turnout from attendees, and exhibitors reported very successful sales.
After these three expositions, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council will organize a number of events throughout the summer. Some of these events include the Simply Shopping Fest (29 July to 1 August), the Hong Kong International Jewellery Show (29 July to 2 August), the Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem and Pearl Show (29 July to 2 August), the Food Expo (11 to 15 August), the Beauty & Wellness Expo (11 to 15 August), the Home Delights Expo (11 to 15 August), and the Hong Kong International Tea Fair ( (11 to 13 Aug). These events will assist local businesses in growing their share of the local retail market while also providing a boost to Hong Kong’s economy and catering to the diverse requirements of the general public.
