That same Japanese craft-based sensibility that brought us origami and ikebana has obviously been at work again—in book stacking.
Thanks to Rocket News 24, we can now gaze in wonderment at the awesome creativity and dexterity of bookstore shelf stackers in Japan, as they build book displays that would put their Western peers to shame.
Despite the global importance of Sony devices and Rakuten’s Kobo as e-book readers, Japan’s e-book market has reportedly been slow to take off, and is still held back by hidebound publishing houses reluctant to face the same digital disruption that has upset their Western rivals. One upside of this rigid structure, however, is that booksellers have had the time and stability to develop these astonishing skillz.
You have to wonder what will happen when stocks run low and customers actually try to pull out a book from one of these amazing stacks. Still, amid the debate on how to keep bookstores relevant and active, here’s one way to add to their attractiveness—astounding feats of stacking architecture.
