Book lovers can expect large discounts and a wider selection of books in English when the Hong Kong Book Fair opens today.
That's as competition among 530 exhibitors intensifies due to rising rents and limited space.
The largest consumer fair in town, which runs until July 24 at the Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai, will have a slightly larger English book zone of 16 exhibitors, one more than last year.
Sales managers like Priscilla Yiu Pui-sin (from English-book wholesaler Confidence Services Centre) view the event with some anxiety, as her firm is trying to cover higher costs for booths with attractive deals. 'It will be quite a tough year. We can only count on selling more books to cover increased costs,' she said.
Confidence, which added two more booths this year, would offer best-sellers with a 40 per cent discount and its collection would increase by about 300 titles to more than 1,000, Yiu said.
The Trade Development Council, which has organised the annual event for 23 years, said rents remained unchanged.