Many of you probably wonder: what happened to Bagualing, the other industrial park in Shangbu Management Zone? And it’s true, so much has been made of & off Huaqiangbei that we forget: the 1986 master plan called for two industrial parks in Shangbu and like Huaqiangbei, Bagualing changed the world as we knew it. And by we, I mean those of us born in the 60s and 70s . For roughly two decades (let’s say ≈ 1990-2010), Bagualing was the printing capital of the world–books, books, and more beautiful books were printed there. In the States, you probably encountered these books via the discount warehouses that sold cheap books either by mail or in large downtown spaces. Chez Shenzhen, especially in the naughties, Bagualing was a great place to shop and purchase a Korean manga or a French novel. Of course, architecture, design, and art books were everywhere, in every language, and could be had for 30 or 40 rmb. Good good days, no more.

When top down restructuring started, the larger printing presses left Bagualing. Some of the higher end printing migrated to Beijing. As in Huaqiangbei, there was a naughties commercial restructuring, where for a decade or so, the manufacturing economy bumped up against the city’s exuberant consumption. Restaurants occupied the main streets of the industrial park, while the factory buildings continued to print and sell books. Same narrative arc as HQB: from state manufacturing to entrepreneurial manufacturing to increasing levels of consumption and then the last remnants of industry being squeezed out in the mid-10s and finally our favorite entrepreneurs being squished out during Covid.

But. What a difference location makes. Bagualing is a few subway stations away from Shennan Road, and the rentals are still way below those in other parts of Futian. Redevelopment has been much slower (not slow, but slower) and mallification less pernicious. Moreover, the restaurants have weathered the storm, and Bagualing #1 Road remains a pleasure to explore, especially at night when the restaurants and bars open their doors. In the pictures below, note the two-lane roads, green-scaping, and the blunt modernity of the buildings. Of course, my pictures are daytime pictures because I’m more morning bird than late night cat. But you get the idea.