New bookshop opens in Wood Green

Tim West and Simon Key used to be the managers of Waterstones bookshop in Wood Green. They opened the “The Big Green Bookshop” on Saturday 8 March 2008. It’s a small independent bookshop, and they hope it will become an integral part of the Wood Green and Haringey community.

It’s at Unit 1, Brampton Park Road, Wood Green London N22 6BG. (Just off Wood Green High Road, just south of MacDonalds)

Phone: 0208 881 6767. Email: enquiries@biggreenbookshop.com

When Waterstones shut down their Shopping City branch last summer, this left Wood Green, a major retail centre, without a specialist bookstore. Tim and Simon have had some advice from Haringey’s Regeneration team. They’re also very positive about their welcome from the Library Service. And they’ve found a lot of enthusiasm in Haringey schools – including hundreds of entries from children in a competition to name the new bookshop.

Can a small independent bookshop succeed in Wood Green, when so many books are now sold online? Tim and Simon are confident that a community bookshop will work by offering the sort of advice and expertise you get from professionals who really know their stuff. Their website promises: “A place where there’s always something happening, be it an author event, a reading group, a coffee morning, an evening of music or poetry, or just a place where they can be inspired by something they find on the shelves. Come and see us soon……”

Read the full story and see photos on their weblog

Best of all, visit the bookshop yourself – (and of course, other independent local stores).