Independent bookshops from across the United Kingdom and Ireland continue to thrive with creative, specialist and community-centred activities boosting sales in the face of the cost-of-living and business rates crises. This, of course, includes Manchester, and as such, Simply Books in Bramhall, Stockport has been crowned the North England winner at the Independent Bookshop of the Year awards.
The Independent Bookshop of the Year awards seek to recognise the best of our traditional, independent bookshops in the UK and Ireland, awarding one bookshop in each region per year. At the beginning of this year, the shortlists were revealed for the awards, naming the likes of The House of Books and Friends, Queer Lit and The Little Ripon Bookshop as finalists for the North England category.
Simply Books picked up the ‘Nibbie’ for Independent Bookseller of the Year way back in 2009 and 16 years on its customers are as loyal as ever. New owners renovated and modernised in 2024 – with additions including a book club room that hosts a dozen different groups, plus a wine bar and new website – without losing the special spirit of the place.
Tom Tivnan, managing editor at The Bookseller, said: “British and Irish indies continue to thrive, despite the overall climate, with entrepreneurship and creativity. These winners and finalists are wonderfully unique and idiosyncratic, but there is a link in that all of them are not confined by the four walls of their shops – they are out in their communities organising festivals, visiting schools, bringing authors to town.
“Sure, they sell a lot of books, but that is just the start: independent bookshops are Britain and Ireland’s local cultural lynchpins.”
The full list of winners at the Independent Bookshop of the Year awards 2025 are:
- East of England: Maldon Books, Essex
- Island of Ireland: Bridge Books, County Down
- London: Queen’s Park Books
- Midlands: The Heath Bookshop, Kings Heath
- North England: Simply Books, Bramhall
- Scotland: The Book Nook, Stewarton
- South East England: Medina Bookshop, Isle of Wight
- South West England: Storysmith, Bristol
- Wales: Griffin Books, Penarth