New Mong Kok bookshop opens as Hong Kong independents face pressure

Grace Lau has opened New Year Bookshop in Hong Kong’s Mong Kok district, defying a difficult period for the city’s independent bookshops. The roughly 600-square-foot shop, located above Sai Yeung Choi Street South, opened on Sunday with more than 2,000 new and second-hand titles. Its selection focuses on literature, history and philosophy.

Lau, 41, invested a six-figure sum in a one-year lease. She told the South China Morning Post that the shop fulfilled a long-held ambition and that some of its stock came from her personal collection, kept at home and in rented storage. Books by Chinese poet Bei Dao and Hong Kong writer Liu Yichang feature prominently in the shop.

Lau said her decision was motivated more by her enthusiasm for books than by commercial calculations. The opening follows a series of closures and disruptions affecting independent booksellers. Hunter Bookstore’s owners were arrested in June over alleged sedition and money laundering, while Elmbook said in July that it would close its Mong Kok premises after being barred from the Hong Kong Book Fair.

Greenfield Bookstore also announced its closure after a raid by national security police, and Have a Nice Stay shut in August. Lau said falling rents had created an opportunity, with commercial rents down by about 40 per cent from their peak. She also said her workload as a mother had eased after her daughter entered secondary school.

To limit risk, the shop is relying mainly on local publishers, including City University of Hong Kong Press, Chinese University of Hong Kong Press, Oxford University Press and Book Matter. Lau hopes to host author events and build a comfortable browsing space, while acknowledging that only time will show whether her specialist selection can attract a wider audience.