Serendipity I was in Farnham passing by Blue Bear Bookshop during their opening launch party.
For the last week or more, dreadful weather, cold, raining, never sure what the weather will do as check the day before then within less than twelve hours the weather has changed again.
I have gone out when it looks like it is not about to rain.
This week and last week, I have popped into Farnham midweek, thus no need to visit today, but on the spur of the moment, I changed my mind, even though no need to visit Farnham.
Usually I alight from the bus and walk into Farnham along the River Wey and up Downing Street. I also cut through alleyways, avoiding The Borough.
The Borough is unpleasant, heavily congested, narrow pavement jostled-into the road, very heavily polluted.
Today though I was walking through The Borough.
I noted Oxfam had swapped shops, the bookshop now in The Borough. A very professional job, remove the Oxfam sign and would never know it was an Oxfam shop.
Past WHSmith, a dreadful store, a huge mistake relocating tho Post Office into WHSmith.
I then noticed a new bookshop, Blue Bear Bookshop, a new bookshop packed with people.
I looked in and happened upon the launch party of the Blue Bear Bookshop.
Food, cakes, flutes of Champagne or at least fizzy wine. In a corner a young lad knocking out poetry on demand on an old typewriter.
I went in search of the Big Issue seller, could not find her, by the time I got back, the food had all but gone.
Whoever did the catering did an excellent job the food and cakes excellent.
People, kids, dogs. Barely able to move.
The books aesthetically arranged on the shelves, though means fewer books.
Very much work in progress.
Currently a wider selection in the Oxfam Bookshop.
And therein lies the dilemma, stock best sellers which are the bread and butter, but in doing so will be undercut by Waterstone’s and the supermarkets, or stock more interesting titles which may not sell.
Worth a visit to P & G Wells in the backstreets of Winchester behind Winchester Cathedral, the bookshop Jane Austin used. Always interesting titles in the window, how bookshops used to be, books tempted to buy, not the best selling hyped rubbish the publishers dump on Waterstone’s.
Blue Bear Bookshop not only a bookshop, also a coffee shop. The coffee shop side very much unfinished business.
I ordered a cappuccino. My expectations were not high. To my surprise drinkable, on a par with Krema in Downing Street, thus now have two excellent coffee shops in Farnham.
The coffee Wogan Coffee I have never heard of, nor has anyone I have spoken to, a coffee roastery in Bristol.
The image on a box resembled a 1960s Soho gangster.
Coffee served in takeaway coffee cups not good. But I was assured a temporary measure for the opening and they will be serving coffee in ceramic.
The staff trained, but training a barista does not make, learn by employing a skilled head barista, who acts a mentor. Small changes make all the difference.
I did though note the coffee freshly ground, coffee carefully weighed.
The girl who served me had worked in a coffee shop in Finland.
I know not of Finland, but Sweden has a high reputation for coffee, as does the Baltic States.
Currently only from the espresso machine. Future maybe pour over. I strongly recommend source from Coffee Gems as local to Farnham and very high quality coffee.
I am reminded of Little Tree, a bohemian bookshop come coffee shop where sit drinking coffee under the shade of the trees, later in the evening craft beer.
At Little Tree, a far greater choice of books, philosophy, poetry, literature, politics. Not that I have ever seen anyone buy a book. Though I am told people buy books in the morning.
Having said that, I recently bought Walking in Athens, a collection of essays, little vignettes of Athens. And in the past have bought music.
Something Blue Bear Bookshop may wish to copy from Little Tree, bookmarks featuring writers, writers of literature not best sellers, the bill for the coffee, always brought with a glass of water, attached to the bookmark with a paper clip.
On the coffee counter by the cakes was a pile of a magazine I have never heard of, Chapter Catcher.
Chapter Catcher launched in June by John Bird, the guy behind Big Issue, a selection of reading, samplers to encourage people to read if not buy books. It cannot have gone beyond the launch issue as it was the launch issue on the counter.
But who is going to pay a fiver for a magazine never heard of that is sealed in an envelope and cannot browse the content?
I suggested they may wish to sell high end magazines, Standart, Drift, Ambrosia, Cereal, or at least dot around for people to browse.
In the centre a large communal table. Good for discussions, poetry reading, and they are planning events.
Possible future events Dhan Tamang UK latter art champion on latte art, a talk on The Alchemist.
A must for the large communal table, The World Atlas of Coffee.
Down wooden stairs a cellar. Appearance of a store room. More work in progress.
Opening an indie bookshop or even a coffee shop, is a risky business, especially in today’s failing High Street.
The location not good, a very polluted street which is best avoided, but may have been all that was available.
We hear much of the failing High Street, of towns turning into ghost towns, each week of another corporation chain gone into liquidation.
But chains have brought it upon themselves. They focused on expansion, not on profitability, paid ludicrous rents, and in doing so drove up rents for everyone and put local businesses out of businesses and are now paying the cost of their unsustainable businesses practices.
When chains collapse, we should welcomes the news, as it provides the opportunity for local small business.
I have seen too many good bookshops close, Thorpe’s in Guildford, Readers Rest in Lincoln, to name but two.
To see a new bookshop open is good news, and a double reason for celebration, a coffee shop too serving speciality coffee.
It is now for local people to support. If you see a book in Waterstone’s not discounted then buy from Blue Bear Bookshop. And unless you really enjoy drinking disgusting undrinkable coffee from tax dodging chains that have to be doused in syrups to make palatable, there are now two coffee shops serving excellent coffee in Farnham, Krema and Blue Bear Books.
Keithpp's Blog 