Along with the steps leading to the second floor is a wall measuring eight meters wide and 10 meters tall, lined with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. [Photo/jiaodong.net]

The Dangdang Yuejie Bookstore is not a traditional bookstore, but a cultural complex equipped with coffee shops and dining rooms. Yuan stressed that the bookstore is aimed at providing customized reading experience and a space for social and cultural activities. People can visit the bookstore to meet friends or take part in activities other than reading, according to Yuan.

Yuan also explained the reasons why the bookstore opened in Yantai. Yantai boasts a dense reading atmosphere and the shopping mall in the Laiyang district is adjacent to the university town, therefore it can attract more visitors.

Yuan noted that the store will invite writers to hold meet-and-greets to sign his or her books in the future.