Jetlag Books Beijing Sanlitun Stores 时差书店三里屯双店

Founded in 2020, Jetlag Books is an independent bookstore in Sanlitun, Beijing, specializing in books and magazines on travel, fashion and design. In a space of 40 square meters, the bookstore needed to accommodate a shelving system, seating/reading area, and a coffee bar. To highlight the theme of the bookstore, we decided to focus on lighting to visualize the “jetlag” through manipulating the time perception as well as creating a sensation of weightlessness.

The dark blue interior and the bright-white indirect lighting eliminate the influence of the changing natural light from outside almost completely, creating a constant, neutral, time-static atmosphere. The primary lighting is a series of LED light bands installed behind the shelving system that takes over three walls. The display walls consist of steel brackets and two layers of opal PVC sheets in-between, which filter the LED light from behind into a soft, homogenous glow, providing plenty of light for reading in the store, while also creating a slight sensation of weightlessness, as the lighting produces a floating, no-shadow effect.

A flexible shelving system with three types of shelving elements is designed to adapt the different sizes and displays of books and magazines. The body of the shelf is formed from 2mm thick steel plate and is secured to the steel profile support by metal hooks on both sides. The shelving partitions can be therefore easily moved and re-arranged to give the display a fresh look. In the middle of the store is a white marble central table that is used as a display for selective books, echoed by a bar counter of the same material located to the right of the entrance. Two benches at the window and a seating nook at the entrance make the most of the compact space, inviting the visitors to sit and read, or simply enjoy a cup of coffee.