About us
We opened our first bookshop in 2002, in the cathedral city of Ely. In the decades since, we've opened bookshops in Bath, St Andrews, Edinburgh, and now York.
Behind all that we do is a deep and unrelenting love for books, and an unwavering belief in bookshops with individual booksellers at the helm rather than a distant head office. We remain family-run, independent booksellers, now in our second generation.
2002 - Ely
In 2002, Robert and Louise Topping set up our first bookshop in Ely. It has since grown to become a three-floor bookshop, expanding upwards twice over the years. Their bookish endeavours were assisted by their children Hugh and Cornelia, who cut their bookselling teeth aged 11 and 8 years old making tea and coffee for the people of Ely. Both have continued to be an integral part of the company - and have taken on more significant roles since the early days!
Our Ely bookselling team is peppered with lifelong booksellers such as Stuart Havis and Robert Jones, some of whom have worked with Robert since his time at Waterstone's (with an apostrophe, as it was in those days). Indeed, Stuart has worked with Robert since the age of sixteen.
Over the years, they have hosted countless events in the spectacular Ely Cathedral and brought some of the biggest names to speak to the city's readers.
2007 - Bath
Our original Bath bookshop opened in 2007 with Saber Khan and Kathleen Smith, who were joined over the years by other bookish individuals such as Matthew, Saskia and Claudia.
Starting its life on the fringes of the city’s centre, Bath frequently filled to the rafters everywhere from its small premises to the largest venues in the city. We have been joined by names such as David Attenborough, Stephen Fry, Buzz Aldrin, Margaret Atwood, Michael Caine, Sally Rooney, and many others.
Kathleen's ‘talk & tasters’ cookery series has garnered a strong following amongst the Bath public, charmed by the incongruence of seeing world-renowned chefs whipping up dishes amidst the bookshelves.
2014 - St Andrews
Our third bookshop opened in 2014, in the university town of St Andrews. Visitors flock from far and wide to St Andrews, lured by the promise of its unparalleled golf scene - but many have found perusing our extensive range of golf titles an easier sport to master.
In 2022, the bookshop expanded to occupy the building next door. Doubling the floorspace allowed the books to double in turn, with the bookshop now playing host to around 70,000 books and an expansive author event space.
2019 - Edinburgh
Architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner once wrote that the building which marks the end of Edinburgh's New Town was ‘so curious and extravagant it is a wonder it was ever built at all’. This storied building became our fourth bookshop in 2019 led by Hugh, Cornelia, and Duncan Furness.
Rolling ladders, hand-painted signs, and floor-to-ceiling bookcases continued the distinctive style of the other bookshops, whilst the 85,000 books lining the shelves whet our appetite for bookselling on a larger scale.
2021 - Bath, again!
In 2021, our hearts were set on the former Friends Meeting House in Bath. Designed by the architect of the National Gallery, William Wilkins, and erected in 1818, we are now just a stone's throw from Bath Abbey.
The move gave us space for 80,000 titles and since then we have hosted Tim Peake, Matt Haig, Dolly Alderton and Nigel Slater, as well as nine (and counting) Booker prize-winners. Our Bath bookshop runs an immensely busy literary festival programme with over 200 author events a year - and has attracted visitors from as far as Australia!
2026 - York
We opened our newest bookshop in the heart of York on 5th June 2026, in a building dating from 1860.
It is the largest independent bookshop in Britain, spanning three floors and playing host to some fantastic views of the Minster. We hope we can welcome you in to share in this exciting new chapter.
“I do think that, before it’s too late, we would be wise to consider a certain ideal of bookselling - that we imagine a future in which bookstores not only endure but realise their highest aspirations.”
In Praise of Good Bookstores, Jeff Deutsch
Robert had been a bookseller for many years, heading up the flagship Deansgate Waterstone's throughout the 1990s. Parting ways with Waterstone's was the push needed to build a bookshop shaped by his own bookselling vision and ideology.
But what makes a good bookshop?
Perhaps the best a bookseller can do in answering that question is to recommend a book: In Praise of Good Bookstores by Jeff Deutsch, the director of Chicago’s Seminary Co-op Bookstores, is an extraordinary edict on bookselling, and instructive reading on why and how one fights for independent booksellers.
For us, it lies in the breadth of titles - including the long-term and slow-selling, in addition to the books of the moment. It lies in the unique relationship booksellers have within their communities and on the high streets of their cities. It lies in supporting authors by selling a book year-round, and in ensuring that our booksellers have the freedom to back the books they feel readers will love. Fundamentally, it's a belief in books.
(Pictured left: Robert Topping shelving)
