Kota Kinabalu: Things don’t look promising for retailers books in the State Capital which saw the closure of more bookstores, Harris in 1Borneo, and Times in Suria Sabah. A few years earlier, Times’ outlet at Warisan Square also closed down.
Before these chain bookstores, standalone Gaya Street ones like Tung Nan, Lee Man, Hock Seng, Beach Street’s Penguins - Zenithway and Segama Complex’s Tai Yang were all closed down even as they sold stationery.
The only chain bookstore existing in malls – Popular Bookshop in Imago, Suria Sabah and City Mall, also has its online presence to compete with Amazon and other online retailers.