The National Policy Foundation yesterday urged the Ministry of Culture to help Taiwan’s ailing brick-and-mortar bookstores with subsidies for rent and activities.
Tax exemptions rolled out by the government last year did not stop the decline of stores on Taipei’s famous “book street,” said Apollo Chen (陳學聖), the convener of the culture and sports division of the think tank, which is affiliated with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
Chen said that a foundation survey showed that the 77 ground-level shopfronts on Chongqing S Road are predominantly occupied by generic commercial establishments, including 18 restaurants, 12 banks and eight travel agencies.
Less than a