Harry Potter, broken arms and games!

Hello there!
First off thanks so much for a brilliant Harry Potter Book Night! We had over 200 (TWO HUNDRED!) people through the door. We cast spells, got sorted into houses, made a huge mess and had a great time.

We also saw Mark Harrison, Adrian Roye and Hannah Woof play our Folk Club on Friday, with a near capacity (4 tickets left!) room. Thanks to Hannah for stepping in at last minute due to Charlie Leavy breaking her arm! Ouch. (Charlie has been rebooked later in the year). Beforehand we filmed our 50th Big Comfy Session with Adrian. You can see the previous 49 (and subscribe) at www.bigcomfysessions.com.

Hannah Woof

Adrian Roye

Mark Harrison. 

So onto this week. This week is 'Gaming' week as we host our Retro Game Night and Board Game Night on Thursday 11th Feb and Friday 12th. On Thursday Dan from Entertainment Bros fills the shop with Nintendo and Sega classics for you to play for free. There will be an exclusive sale on at Entertainment Bros on the night too. Come on down from 6pm. The bar is open!

On Friday we host our 2nd Board Game Night. The first last month was a huge success. We ended up bringing more tables and chairs in throughout the evening! There are 100 or so games on offer from the basic to the completely insane. If you're not too sure how to play or what to play then there is expert advice on offer from Rob who runs Tea and Tabletop. Again, bar open!
No other food or drink can be brought in I'm afraid as then I wouldn't be open! Ha!

Just a smidgen of games on offer.

You can see our future events on the event tab at the top. A quick heads up that we have Dennis Carey here on Feb 20th launching his new book An Untilled Field! This will be a really packed event so turn up early. Her's here from 2pm.

Be sure to Like and Follow on social media.

Til next time

Michael
:)

A visit to The Book Barge

Many will know I'm a big fan of social media. In January sometime a friend posted a picture on Facebook of a bookshop van from Spain. I retweeted this picture and received loads of comments about other quirky places you can find a bookshop. One such place was The Book Barge. 'That's really cool!' I said out load to my cats then after browsing a bit more, found out it's docked just 45 minutes drive from me. I made plans to visit but never made it to Barton Marina where it was docked. Nevertheless I followed The Book Barge on Twitter and soon found out that the owner, Sarah, was releasing a book and having the launch on the barge!
There really was no excuse now. I contacted Sarah to see if it was OK to pop along and a week or so later I pulled up at the Marina with my wife in tow.

The book in question is The Bookshop That Floated Away and documents Sarah's undulating adventure across England and Wales for 6 months in the barge trying to drum up support for her bookshop and others in a time of financial uncertainty, at the same time figuring out what the hell she was doing. I'll have a book review posted later this week but I can honestly say it's my favourite book I've read this year.

My wife Heidi and I arrived at the Marina dead on time (a McEntee trait) and headed to the 60ft vessel. I peeped through the windows first as outside it was quiet and deserted but I soon saw the barge was packed like a can of sardines from front to back (bow to stern?). We ambled down the steps and was welcomed by Stu, Sarah's boyfriend along with a big table filled with teacups ready to be filled by the dozen or so gins on offer.

I've never been on a barge let alone a converted bookshop one and the feeling was of slight amazement and slight terror. I've always been very claustrophobic but I was too consumed taking in my surroundings to realise I was stuck in the middle of the barge with no way out unless I barged (HA!) past lots of people. It wasn't until my wife mentioned the confined spaces that I came to realise this. I let it slide though and introduced myself to Sarah.

Sarah was a delight, she was stunned by the amount of people there, consumed by the event and looked generally like it was all a dream, but she took it all in her stride. We managed to grab 10 minutes chatting about the book and the barge, the press and the future between the melee of eager punters. She signed my book and I went off to grab some food.

The barge is moored right next to the pub The Waterfront so Heidi and I grabbed a lovely meal there then waited for the group of keen readers to pour out of the barge and into the pub. Part of the pub had been earmarked for the group as an 'after party drinks venue' so we stayed for half an hour waiting but it seemed like the barge was a too packed, too comfy venue as everyone stayed on board! We headed back to the barge to talk some more but then had to escape back to Warwickshire.

Sarah Henshaw AKA Captain

The Book Barge is a truly wonderful bookshop and venue and Sarah is such a warm and friendly book seller I hope that I can emulate the environment she has created, albeit in a more regular bricks and mortar shop!
There will be a second book launch in London on April 22nd on the barge starting at 6.30 then heading to The Narrow Boat Inn, Islington.

You can normally find the barge at:

The Book Barge

Barton Marina

Barton Turn

Barton-Under-Needwood

Burton-On-Trent

DE13 8AS

www.TheBookBarge.co.uk

I'll be returning very soon to have a proper chat with Sarah and do a bit of shopping.

Michael

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A visit to The Tree House Bookshop in Kenilworth

Round about a year ago whilst researching bookshops online I came across a local wannabe bookshop based in Kenilworth. This bookshop immediately stood out to me as the idea's that Victoria the owner had mirrored mine exactly. Used books, music, poetry, comedy, events, refreshments; basically a community hub. At the time I stumbled across her blog she had just started selling at Kenilworth's local market but after a few weeks it didn't seem to be taking off. I started to send a few tweets and emails to wish her luck and to stick with it and quite soon after, she managed to secure a premises. Although rocky at the start, the shop is now slowly getting more and more visitors and holds regular film nights and other events. After we'd been in touch for more or less a year I thought it was about time I took the 40 minute drive to go and introduce myself and see the shop.

The shop is a great space and is filled with bookcases of all shapes and sizes and several big comfy sofas and chairs to sit and relax (I think Victoria must have stolen my business plan). It's tucked away just behind the main street and at the moment unfortunately doesn't have a sign but Victoria tells me a local artist is knocking one up as we speak! It's all about getting the local community together. Once this sign is up I'm sure the shop will become the go-to place that it's set up to be. Although it was a cold wet Wednesday morning, there was a steady stream of customers, some obviously regulars, plus someone dropping off a bag of books. I spent a good half hour chatting to Victoria about setting up, opening and now the daily running of the shop. Her insight was really appreciated as it has given me more ideas to play with for The Big Comfy Bookshop. Victoria runs the shop on her own with sporadic help from volunteers and I will be in the same boat, at least at the start. She is currently looking for someone to help with events so get in touch with her if you think you could lend a hand.
I then spent half an hour browsing and came away with The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and Rupert Everett's first autobiography 'Red Carpets and Other Banana Skins', along with a free bookmark!
Bookshops ran by a sole individual are done so out of the love and care for the local community, with little if any monetary rewards, so I urge you to head on over to The Tree House Bookshop and see for yourself. You can even help yourself to tea and coffee.

You can visit the Tree House Bookshop at:

5-7 Abbey End,

Kenilworth,

Warwickshire,

CV8 1QH

www.TreeHouseBookshop.co.uk

www.Facebook.com/treehousebookshop

@TreehousebkShop

As for my own shop, I will be visiting the Fargo Village site on February 11th for a walk around and get more info on opening. You can like me on Facebook HERE, follow me on twitter HERE and buy books from the website HERE.

Thanks again Victoria for the warm hospitality.

Michael

Fargo Village - The new home of The Big Comfy Bookshop

After over 12 months I am excited to say I have signed a lease for a property!

My shop will be where the rolling shutter is

I will be moving into a purpose built creative village in Coventry called Fargo Village, on Far Gosford Street.
Fargo is an exciting new cultural hub that will open next year. It is being built on a disused industrial site, using the old buildings themselves rather than knocking down and making a building-by-numbers, and will incorporate dozens of independent businesses, including me! As well as books you'll find artists, music, dance, food and more.

I was approached by Jo from Fargo whilst I was in Earlsdon for the Earlsdon festival. I tucked the leaflet into my bag and subsequently forgot all about it. Only a month later whilst reorganising things did I come across the leaflet and investigate further. I was struck immediately by how similar both Fargo's and my ideas were.

I've visited the site twice already, once whilst it was being featured on Midlands Today (my foot was clearly visible in the background whilst a councillor was being interviewed!).

I am extremely excited by this new venture and hope to get an open date soon. As well as books I'll be selling cakes made by Clairey's Cakes (simply divine!) and Ali Smart, and selling locally made crafts, such as the talented Emily's at Cotton Cat UK. The place is currently being built though so all I know at the moment is it's open next year. I'll still be attending craft fairs and other places in the meantime (I have a 'residency' at POD in Coventry thanks to Adam at the wonderful Here Comes Everyone magazine)

As well as the main buildings, there will also be shipping containers to work and sell from! These can be leased for a short period too so if you fancy having a go at a business but think it's too risky, it really is a grand opportunity.

Please go and visit the Fargo website and follow and like on their social media sites too.

Michael
Follow me on Twitter - @BigComfyBooks
Like me on Facebook - Facebook

How about browsing the shop too? - www.TheBigComfyBookshop.co.uk

A manic few weeks for The Big Comfy Bookshop

Trying to open a shop is hard, but when it comes together it feels fantastic. I'm not jumping the gun just yet but the premises I have lined up is fantastic, flexible and in the ideal location. But let me say this. It is not in Nuneaton.

Nuneaton

I've spent the best part of 9 months trying to start in Nuneaton to no avail. I've covered why in this blog here so I won't bore you with other reasons. I'm not announcing just yet where the shop will be until the lease is signed.

Last week though all the good vibes evaporated as I was burgled. I currently run The Big Comfy Bookshop from my house and so my day-to-day job involves cataloging books, writing blogs, doing social media stuff and generally spending 6-8 hours a day on my laptop. Last Monday though whilst I was out some ####ers smashed my kitchen window and stole my laptop and camera. A lot of the bookshop is backed up but some isn't, so this week will be damage limitations. The kick in the teeth though is that every photo of my 18 month old from the day he was born was on the laptop, and we have no back up. Couple this with the fact my wife Heidi who works at North Warwickshire and Hinckley college, had a week of rehearsals and performances of Miss Saigon at the local arts centre so she's been out for 12 hours a day, and then 3 gigs in my band Barricades Rise in 24 hours, it has been exhausting for both of us.
The college show was superb, see some great pics by Jonathan Coates at www.jscoates.com. The band gigs went well too with a great review by Rob at Redwood photos here.

Miss Saigon performed by NW&H College. Fantastic

This week though is a new start and back on track. I'll be updating the blog more often and letting you all know my thoughts on the shop, books and more.

I've just finished Haruki Murakami's South of the Border, West of the Sun so I'll be doing a review soon. I'm currently reading Neil Gaiman's American Gods for our book club. Feel free to join either by Facebook or just let me know on this blog (comment below). I'm also dipping in and out of Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle.

Michael

The problems of looking for a premises in Nuneaton

It's been 10 months since I finished my full time job to work on The Big Comfy Bookshop full time. The first month was a holiday really as my wife was on maternity and it gave us plenty of time to spend with our new son. Then September hit. Heidi, my wife, goes back to work full time and I start looking into premises and how to sell online, as well as look after my son a few days a week, It's exciting.

I take 2 weeks to organise all the books that are stored in my loft (about 1000 of them) then realise I need more storage. In the meantime I'm driving back and forth all over the country to pick up books. It's fun and exciting. Meeting ex-bookshop owners and book lovers. Then September melts into October and I get the website up, finally. I spend October adding books to the website. I view a property that is perfect and in November an offer is accepted. Woo Hoo! I have a premises!

November rolls into December, which quickly ticks into January and 2013. More and more books are added to the website daily and I'm nearing 2000 books online! My storage facility is close to bursting with about 8000 books, 90% of which are still to be looked at and catalogued. The Facebook is slowly ticking along with 150ish likes, and my twitter has about 200 followers. March comes. I'm frustrated at the 4 month wait of the shop. I've gradually been eating into the money that I need to open the shop, as I need to eat and clothe my baby. Not eat my baby, feed and clothe him. I'm the one that eats. Nevermind.

The shop falls through.

I panic as my heart was 100% in the shop. I had the inside scouted by North Warwickshire and Hinckley College Interior Design students and I even went into the college to talk to them about what I wanted, and I saw some fantastic pieces of work and ideas, and now that's gone. I think about returning to my mundane brain numbing desk job. My wife metaphorically punches me in the face and tells me to man up. I man up.

I view another property. A smaller one but a lot cheaper but it has everything and more than the first shop had. I start visualising the layout. I get excited. Everything looks great. It is owned by the Co-Op. They won't lease it to me as I will be selling tea and cake and they also serve tea and cake, even though the shop has been vacant for over 12 months. Obviously my tea and cake sales would eat into their tiny business and ruin them. Anyway, shop falls through without an offer being made.

Then, world book night! At Nuneaton Library with about 40 other book lovers who are there to meet local author Rosie Goodwin. It's a fantastic night and I give out my business cards and explain I have no premises but I am online. Every single person thinks it's a fantastic idea and just what Nuneaton needs. I beem inside. I can do this. Just opposite the library is a tiny little council owned shop with a 'to let' sign. It's just £7500 pa with a rolling lease. Absolutely perfect to start up in. I ring the next day. It was leased last week.

Son of a beesting.

I decide to start attending fairs as a seller. My first at Stockingford Spring fair is amazing, taking double what I expected and meeting loads of people who had heard about the shop through the grapevine. Fair 2 was appalling, at Nuneaton URC. There was no advertising by the 'promoters' except a message a month before on their Facebook saying 'Don't forget about our Craft Fair!'. No one knew about it except those I had contacted myself. I actually had time to read a WHOLE BOOK whilst no one attended. I sold 4 books. Other stall holders left at 11.30. Deflated.

Then Earlsdon festival happened. Oh. My. God. Simply the best experience to date. The day was glorious, the stalls were huge and I literally didn't stop all day. It fired me up.

I spent the next few days trawling around Nuneaton scouring premises. But there simply aren't any that are friendly to new businesses. 

The rent and rates in the town are so high it's impossible to contemplate getting a shop there. For example, this shop

on Abbey Street, with some foot traffic but not lots is £20,000 PA plus VAT (so now it's £24,000) plus rates (not sure how much they are for this but I estimate £5000 PA, so up to £29,000) plus gas, electricity and water. Basically it's £30,000 per year without stock, fittings, staff etc. It's in one of the main streets in Nuneaton but it's quiet. 

After looking at every single available shop (through the windows at least, then researching online) there is not one single shop in the centre that a new business, or at least my business, can afford. This is why I am having to look outside the town.

I am investigating a pop-up shop in Nuneaton too though. I am hoping that a landlord of one of the empty shops has some vision, and would rather have their premises hosting a business for a few weeks or months than having it empty. I'm starting that process now.

The bookshop is very much alive, but will take any help it can get whether that be you know of an available space, even if it's for a short time, or maybe you fancy helping out at one of the craft fairs I'll be at, or maybe you're a graphic designer who wants to add more to their portfolio? Designing flyers maybe?. This was started with the Nuneaton community in the front of my mind and I want to involve as many people as possible.

Next week I will be meeting with someone to look at a premises outside Nuneaton. It's an excellent opportunity but it obviously takes the business outside of where I wanted it to start. It's bitter-sweet.

Thanks for reading this long ramble. I am passionate about this.

Michael

@BigComfyBooks