Barter Books
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Barter Books is a second-hand bookshop in the historic English market town of Alnwick, Northumberland, owned and run by Stuart and Mary Manley. It has over 350,000 visitors a year, 40% of whom are from outside the area, and is one of the largest second-hand bookshops in Europe.[1] It is considered a local tourist attraction[2] and has been described as "the British Library of second-hand bookshops."[3]
The bookshop is in the Victorian Alnwick railway station, designed by William Bell and opened in 1887.[4] The station was in use until the closure of the Alnwick branch line in 1968;[5] Barter Books was opened in 1991. It is open every day including bank holidays except for Christmas Day.
The shop also houses a cafe called The Station Buffet which serves hot food all day to customers at tables in the original tiled waiting rooms of the railway station. [6]
The shop is notable for its use of a barter system, whereby customers can exchange their books for credit against future purchases; standard cash purchases are also available.
Keep Calm and Carry On poster
In 2000 the owner discovered, in a box of old books bought at an auction,[7] a World War II poster from 1939 with the message "Keep Calm and Carry On". The shop owners framed it and hung it up by the cash register; it attracted so much interest that Manley began to produce and sell copies.[8][9]
In late 2005, Guardian journalist Susie Steiner featured the replica posters as a Christmas gift suggestion, raising their profile still further.[10][11] Other companies followed the Manleys' example, and the design rapidly began to be used as the theme for a wide range of products.[12] Mary Manley later commented, "I didn't want it trivialised; but of course now it's been trivialised beyond belief."[12]
See also
References
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- ↑ Alnwick Branch Template:Webarchive
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External links
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