THE city marked World Reading Day yesterday by releasing a guideline to support the development of more bookstores.

Measures in the guideline include introducing bookstores into the city’s urban planning, and preferential policies on taxation and rents.

The guideline is co-launched by 15 city-level authorities including Shanghai Press and Publication Bureau.

The city has seen many bookstores close their doors in recent years as people resorted to digital reading or e-commerce platforms. However, bookstores are making a comeback, officials say, often as themed bookshops.

Shanghai is expected to open about 20 bookstores this year —and four of them opened yesterday.

According to the guideline, urban planners should prepare spaces for physical bookstores when creating new streets, business districts, residential communities or schools.

For example, a residential community with 80,000 people should prepare at least 200 square meters of space for bookstores.

The guideline also encourages real estate companies, shopping malls and public service facilities to lower rents for bookstore operators or even provide space at no charge.

District governments should also provide more support to local bookstores, the guideline states.

“There were some difficulties before, but now many shopping malls are pitching us, hoping to introduce our bookstores into their malls,” said Zhu Bing, an official with Popular Bookmall. It opened two bookstores yesterday — in The River Mall, and in suburban Huinan.

“Bookstores can attract and retain visitors, which is also important for the shopping malls,” said Zhu. He added the rent at The River Mall was about half the mall’s normal rate.

Zhu said the company aimed to have at least one bookstore in every Shanghai district.

In addition to emerging chainstores such as Popular Bookmall traditional players like Xinhua Bookstore are also seeking a stronger market presence, encouraged by the guideline.

The 80-year-old bookstore chain once had nearly 20 professional outlets in Shanghai, some specializing in music, architectures and art.

“With the development of e-commerce platforms, professional readers can get information and the once hard to find professional books easily online,” said Jiang Li, an executive with Xinhua Media Chain Co. “Therefore we also need to upgrade to meet the readers’ new demands.”