A Bramhall Bookshop has been named as one of nine regional winners of the Independent Book retailer of the year
Simply bools was selected by the judges from 72 finalists announced last month, the award, sponsored by book wholesaler Gardners, celebrates those bookshops that continue to draw book lovers to towns and cities across the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The overall winner, announced on 12th May, receives a cheque for £5,000 from Gardners, and will go on to compete for Book Retailer of the Year.
Simply Books is an independent bookshop in Bramhall that has been serving its
community for over 20 years.
Early last year, mother-and-son team Karen and Ben took over the ownership of the shop and it has gone from strength to strength ever since, with an entire store refurbishment and the introduction of a speciality coffee shop and a wine bar that
sees the shop open right into the evening.
Their events programme has seen huge growth,welcoming literary heavyweights including Jodi Picoult, Cecelia Ahern, and Jojo Moyes to household names of entertainment such as Anton du Beke and Matt Lucas.
Simply Books’work in schools has increased too, with the number of schools the shop works with on a regular basis almost doubling. They launched book clubs, with a huge 12 book clubs for adults now running with over 140 members. Additional clubs are coming, alongside the introduction of children’s ones, too!
Tom Tivnan, The Bookseller managing editor, said:
‘These nine shops reflect the UK and Ireland’s current embarrassment of riches in its independent bookselling scene, a climate which made the selection of the regional and country winners undoubtedly the most closely-run and tightly-contested in British Book Awards history. The finalists speak to what makesindies great: their individuality and idiosyncrasy.
The winners run the gamut from relative newcomers who launched in the teeth of the
pandemic to old hands who have been trading for decades, but they all are bursting with
fresh ideas, and never stint on innovation. They operate in different milieu – bustling city
centres, buzzy market towns, bucolic villages – but all have adapted their businesses to
meet the needs of local communities. Ultimately, what links these indies is they are a
vanguard, bold tastemakers who support authors and create bestsellers, often long before
those books are glimmers in chain or online bookshops’ eyes.’
