An established bustling bookshop located in Crickhowell has been nominated as a regional and country finalist for The British Book Awards 2024 Independent Bookshop of the Year.

In 2010 the owner of Book-ish, Emma, decided she wanted to become a bookseller. Following the initial success, in 2017 the shop moved to a larger location, enabling the business to grow and stock up to 6000 curated books. The bookshop has a children’s snug, in-house event venue (the Loft) and a café.

In recent years the bookshop has hosted authors events with authors such as Lorraine Kelly and Ross Kemp attending. In 2023, the bookshop expanded further opening a second shop on Frogmore Street, Abergavenny. The bookshop has previously won The British Books Awards 2020.

77 independent bookshops have been nominated from nine regions around the UK and Ireland, with five of those being in Wales. The wholesale book suppliers Gardners who sponsor The British Book Awards, celebrate independent booksellers who bring passion and knowledge to the shop floor.

Gardners’ UK Sales Manager, Ruth Gardner, said: “We are proud to be sponsoring the Independent Bookseller of the Year award for the 15th consecutive year! Each year throws up new challenges and it great to see so many bookshops adapt and change to meet these challenges. We know it hasn’t been easy for many, but it’s amazing to see so many thriving. The year’s list is a tough one again with every entry being a worthy winner. We’d like to wish them all the very best of luck and can’t wait to be part of this journey with them.”

On Tuesday 12th March, winners of The Regional and Country Independent Bookshop of the Year award will be announced. Later on Monday 13th May 2024 at Grosvenor House in London, The British Book Awards overall winner will be announced.

The Bookseller Managing Editor, Tom Tivnan, said: “One of the things that is driven home by the selection process for this award is how lucky book buyers in the UK and Ireland are as we are truly in an independent bookshop renaissance. This year’s cohort is one of the strongest I have seen in my 15 years judging this award. Indies have come out of the pandemic and into a cost-of-living and business rates crises, yet still through innovation and creativity thrive as never before. They are lynchpins for our high street, bringing jobs, footfall and communities together. You can’t really pin these indies down as they encompass general booksellers and those who sell into niches; or new shops which have bravely opened in the shadow of the pandemic to businesses that have literally been trading for centuries. But if there is a through-line it is that their collective knowledge and passion shine through and prove once again how much better shop floor expertise is than an algorithm.”

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