How Brick-znd-mortar Bookstores Can Survive in Desperate Times in the Internet Era — A Qualitative Comparative Analysis of the Operation Status of 40 Physical Bookstores in 8 Provinces

With the rapid development of the Internet era, physical bookstores have suffered setbacks in their development and are exploring survival measures. This study investigates the profitability path of physical bookstores in the Internet era, provides guidance for bookstores to provide products and services in the new environment, and provides a theoretical basis for the government to formulate policies to help physical bookstores and other real economy to develop in a high quality. The study uses fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis to explore the impact of six conditions, such as diversification and economy of scale, technology and automation application, on the profit and loss of physical bookstores. The study identifies the necessary condition as well as the configuration influence paths for the profitability of physical bookstores in the context of the Internet, analyses how physical bookstores can target their development according to different paths, and puts forward practical suggestions.