NZ bookshop for sale - makes US media

Shelf Awareness

For Sale: New Zealand's 'Most Beloved Bookshop'

For any prospective bookstore owners who might consider looking beyond U.S. shores for an opportunity, the Nelson Mail reported that Page and Blackmore Booksellers, described as "one of New Zealand's most beloved bookshops, is going up for sale for the first time." The bookshop on Trafalgar St. in Nelson has been named New Zealand's Independent Bookseller of the Year twice and best bookshop in the South Island three times. Page & Blackmore was founded by Susi & Tim Blackmore and Peter & Ann Rigg in 1998. Each couple had been operating a bookstore on Trafalgar Street, and the creation of Page & Blackmore was conceived as a merger that would put the owners of both Blackmore's Booksellers and Pages Bookshop in a stronger position.

In a written statement to customers, the owners said the bookshop had shown "welcome growth" over the past year and they are confident it is in good health. "We're also hearing encouraging noises from the trade in general, which seem to indicate that independent bookselling is in better shape than some media pundits would have us believe."

Susi Blackmore added that she wanted customers to know the owners would take their time to find the right buyer: "We're keen to find owners who value the shop. It would be terrible if it didn't carry on the way it was, because then we wouldn't have anything to read."