YJY Maike store

The YJY Maike Centre Flagship (Store) is a bookstore and commercial complex occupying 4,500 m2 of an elegant building in the Xi’an Hi-tech Industries Development Zone. The space takes its inspiration from its position in Xi’an, once the centre of several important dynasties in ancient China and now the home of the World Heritage Terracotta Army.

The overall concept for the project was ‘Library & Gallery’ to encourage both individual learning and exploration, as well as the communal gatherings often present in galleries. The layout resembles a Japanese or Chinese palace in its scale and use of interlinked rooms, inviting visitors from around the world to relax, unwind, learn, think and imagine.

Distinctive artwork throughout the store is all original, commissioned to reflect themes appropriate to the special location. Overall, the environment celebrates China’s long history and has become a cultural landmark, attracting an average of 5,000 visitors per day (10,000 – 20,000 on weekends).

This bookstore filled with books, nooks to sit and learn, as well as integrated displays for cultural objects. It's a place of never-ending inspiration and became a cultural landmark; an average of visitors are 5000 people per day, especially 10,000-20,000 people per day on the weekends. The area around the open spiral staircase becomes very popular as a symbol of an SNS spot and published in the many web news about this spatial experience all over the world, and it brought a tremendous advertising effect.

The second floor of the space doubles as a lounge for the adjoining Grand Hyatt hotel. The bookstore is filled with books, nooks to sit and learn, as well as integrated displays for cultural objects.

In 2018, the YJY Maike Centre Flagship won the ‘most beautiful bookstore in China’ award. Its designer, Tomoko Ikegai, is currently designing a commercial complex centred around a bookstore in Beijing, scheduled to open in 2020.