Access to affordable books at BookXcess

“Yay! We can finally have access to affordable, quality English books at the BookXcess bookstore in Johor Baru!”

BookXcess Sunway Big Box is now open in Johor Baru;
Co-founder, Andrew Yap [3rd from Left] and CEO Sunway
Malls & Theme Parks, H C Chan [3rd from Right] with
special guests at the official opening event. 

This is the sentiment shared by booklovers and readers who welcomed the opening of the largest bookstore in the Southern region that occupies 32,000 sq ft of Level One at Sunway Big Box hybrid retail park at Sunway Iskandar in Iskandar Puteri.

Johoreans have become familiar with the best book bargains found at the Big Bad Wolf book festivals that visited JB from time to time and their deep longing for the much-anticipated opening of their sister brand, BookXcess bookstore in JB this February, cannot be overstated.

The proof of this was seen in the crowd of shoppers who had gathered at the bookstore entrance way before opening time…

Created with a design concept dubbed, The Box of Knowledge, the centerpiece of the ninth BookXcess bookstore in Malaysia is the towering 7.5-meter tall bookshelves in the shape of a box that cleverly conceal an exciting Children’s Cave within.

The Adult Fiction section within a sunken cavern

In addition to this Box-within-a-Box concept, the wide and roomy layout of the bookstore within a warehouse-like space allows shoppers to explore the store to browse and select their picks from the collection of thousands of brand-new books.

Books are displayed wall-to-wall as well as on islands of bookshelves and be prepared to walk up and down steps into caverns and alcoves.

Inside the Adult Fiction section, look out for a small circle of glass on its floor that allows shoppers to see through into the section below. Fair warning is given to those short wearing skirts, not to linger nearby or to stand on this glass circle…

Besides Café Wolf, their in-store café which serves snacks and beverages for shoppers to enjoy a refreshment break from their browsing, there are comfortable seats and reading corners to rest, relax and read.

Inside the Children's Cave

Thirteen years ago, when co-founder of BookXcess Andrew Yap and his wife, Jacqueline, opened their first store in a tiny space in Amcorp Mall, Kuala Lumpur, they never anticipated how the business would develop to what it is now.

They received such tremendous response in that 500 sq ft bookstore that after only six months, they were ready to move into a larger space that measured 3,000 sq ft to continue with their mission to encourage the reading habit by making available quality books at affordable prices.

Since that humble start in 2007, now BookXcess have retail outlets at The Starling, Fahrenheit88 and SS15 Courtyard in KL.

A view of a section of the shopfloor from upstairs

In May 2018, BookXcess opened the nation’s largest and only 24-hour bookstore at Tamarind Mall and in 2019, they opened in Sunsuria Forum @ 7^th Avenue and their first store outside of Kuala Lumpur in Gurney Paragon Mall, Penang, followed by BookXcess Kong Heng in Ipoh.

At the opening of BookXcess Sunway Big Box, Andrew said that his wife was travelling abroad on a regular buying trip to source for new stock of a wide range of books from publishers around the world.

“BookXcess is on a mission to bring back the love for reading and we are rallying allies everywhere we go, especially the parents’ community.

Take a refreshment break at Cafe Wolf, their in-store cafe

We believe parents are the best people to nurture the reading habit among children,” said Andrew who encouraged parents to instill the reading habit by increasing the number of books at home and exposing their children to a wide variety of books.

“Reading increases knowledge, builds character, improves one’s thinking process and widens your awareness of social, economic and environmental issues,” he added.

Chief Executive Officer of Sunway Malls and Theme Parks, H C Chan, commended Andrew as a visionary leader who has made quality books available and affordable.

Orderly queues at the cashier counters 

Chan, who believes that reading is a human right, and that everyone has the right to an education, was pleased with the partnership with BookXcess Sunway Big Box which opened, well stocked with the latest collection of books.

At the opening event, Chan borrowed a popular quote and proudly declared, “Now everyone can read!”

Parents of young children will be delighted to discover a range of Magical Books that should be enjoyed using Augmented Reality (AR) technology, exclusively available at BookXcess.

Books for sale to donate under the Red Readerhood CSR arm

Reading these Magical AR Books through an app on the smartphone or tablet would make the story come alive with animation for the kids to enjoy an immersive and interactive reading experience.

Take advantage of a special promotion for Magical Books from now till 31 March 2020 where shoppers can buy two Magical Books and get one Magical Book for Free OR buy three Magical Books and get two Magical Books for Free.

BookExcess also introduced their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) arm dubbed, Red Readerhood where brand new English books are collected and donated to the underprivileged through a local organization in support of their cause.

Standing on the see-through glass circle
in the Adult Fiction section

To kick-off their CSR effort in JB, BookXcess Sunway Big Box will match the number of books sold on it opening day to be donated to a charity of their choice.

Shoppers may choose from a selection of books to buy and donate from the shelves marked Red Readerhood in the bookstore.

For the opening weekend, from now till March 1, shoppers can enjoy 20% off titles on top of the discounted books.

Shoppers may also sign up for Free BookXcess membership, purchase selected items for RM1 only, get a RM20 BookXcess cash voucher for every RM150 spent and even enjoy 50% off coffee or tea at Café Wolf.

For more info and ongoing contests, visit BookXcess on Facebook and Instagram or website: www.bookxcess.com

BookXcess Sunway Big Box is located at FF-01, Level One of Sunway Big Box, Sunway Iskandar, Johor. Open daily from 10am to 10pm.