Crockatt & Powell
Wottakers? The continued destruction of any sort of personality on Britain's high streets is causing concern in many circles. But there is a grain of sand in Lambeth the Satanic Chains have yet to find...
Crockatt & Powell is a new independent bookshop in central London. No I'm not joking - we are in zone 1. You can hear Big Ben in the street and see the London Eye through our back window.
My name is Matthew Crockatt and I have worked in bookshops since leaving university. After failing to write a novel I finally surrendered to real life (kind of) by starting a bookshop with a friend, Adam Powell. Adam is a trained architect and designed the shop but I'll leave him to introduce himself.
We think we have created a beautiful space and a great environment in which to browse a carefully chosen selection of books. We can also order anything we don't stock and do book searches for those that have slipped out of print.
This blog is the first part of our adventures into cyber space. When we have made a little money we will construct a website with a forum where people can discuss books online. We are starting a book group that meets on the first Monday of the month. The first meeting is on Feb 6th and we are going to discuss Orhan Pamuk's Snow. We also aim to host a variety of events from author readings to screenings of short films.
We are completely independent and consider the only limits to what the shop can become lie in our own imaginations. I should qualify that. Our imaginations and those of our customers, for what is a bookshop without people?
Come and check us out. We have made a fantastic start and met plenty of folk, but January is a tough month for retailers. We will be closed on Christmas day, Boxing day and also the Tuesday bank holiday so that we can recover from the 10 hour days. After that we will be open, so why not come and see us? Lower Marsh is the best street in London. You didn't know that did you? There is a scooter shop that sells coffee; a market; an S & M shop that sells rubber suits for your dog (!); several good pubs and bars; a flute shop; a brilliant Japanese Cafe...
That's all for now. I might even mention a few books next post.
Matthew
Good luck with the shop.
Lower Marsh is a strange place. Its one of the few places in London (and beyond) which is not over-run with chain stores, although it does have a Boots, Iceland and a couple of Greggs now.
The mixture of shops is amazing, with some of them so niche I wonder how they survive, and having a 'proper' bookshop is a welcome addition.
When I get back to work in mid-January I must pop in to have a look on the way back from the Chunnel bar.