Fred’s Bookshop
This month we are off to Ambleside in Cumbria to visit Fred’s Bookshop. We chatted to Su, the current owner, about the shop’s history and the recent 70th anniversary celebrations. We also talk about recent trends, and Su picks her Fiction and Non-Fiction summer reads for the year. Read on to find out more.
1. We see from your website that you are a long-established bookshop – tell us a little about the background to the shop.
Fred Holdworth first opened the bookshop in 1955 and for the first few decades he also sold records upstairs. Many folks to this day still pop in to reminisce about buying their early books or records here while on holiday in the Lake District. For a long time, the bookshop provided all the course books for students at the college (now the University of Cumbria) but now relies more on tourism as well as some loyal local support. Fred retired in 2000 and handed the helm to Steve, who steered the business through challenging times including foot and mouth, recession and the Covid-19 pandemic before finally retiring in 2023, when he passed the shop over to its third owner Su, who had worked with him over many years.
We’ve always had a reputation for being small and cosy (perhaps a little bit quirky) but packing a punch with our curation. We pride ourselves on trying to offer a little something for everyone rather than piles of bestsellers. People often comment on what an eclectic and varied range we have in stock and marvel at how much we can squeeze into all our little nooks in our old Lake District building.
Our tagline is Curious ~ Indie ~ Small but Mighty, we strive to live up to that!
2. What’s it like running an independent in Ambleside?
Because of our location (in the beautiful national park of the Lake District) we are very dependent on tourist footfall in summer to see us through the quieter winter months. We are very much ‘rooted in place’ at the heart of mountain village life. Being active in the local economy is a huge part of what we do. We sell tickets on behalf of community groups, we support local charities, donate to local causes, fundraise for local ventures and actively choose local business so we’re always giving back to our community. The income and support we get from visitors gets paid back into the local economy and environment.
We have learnt over the decades how to live seasonally, and we love it here all year round (yes – even in the rain!).
3. What types of books are your customers buying at the moment – is there a particular trend you’ve noticed?
We’ve always had a reputation for stocking lots of books about nature, environment and being quite ‘outdoorsy’. We cater for locals and visitors who come here for hiking, fell-running, wild swimming, or rainy ‘lake-filling’ days next to a fire with a good book – so this is a given. But lately we have also been noticing more interest in our ‘Non-Fiction for Curious Minds’ section – particularly books about AI, society, culture and mental health, not to mention cautionary tales from History.
And, of course, it’s worth mentioning the expansion of our ‘Other Worlds’ section – fiction readers are loving fantasy, folk horror and speculative fiction just now.
4. Which fiction and non-fiction summer read would you recommend to your customers this year, and why?
All our booksellers are widely read with varied tastes and so the bookshop is dappled with wee book cards helping to signpost readers to the right book for them. We’re happy to let folks know what we have enjoyed reading but find it hard to ‘recommend’ books unless we know about what the customer enjoys reading. Different books appeal to different folks!
My personal book of the year so far is Land by Maggie O’Farrell – I loved the poignant scenes, the beautiful writing and the weaving of research and history set in the aftermath of the Irish potato famine. Which pairs nicely with a companion read of Rot by Padraic X. Scanlan – a non-fiction book exploring Britain’s imperial role in creating the Great Hunger – well worth a read! But if people want a lighter read for the summer, they can also find many browsable choices on our (one and only) table or in our online browsing lists.
5. And finally, do you have any exciting plans for the shop in the coming months that you would like to share with us?
We’re still recovering from our 70th anniversary celebrations earlier this year! We commissioned an artist to produce a timeline of the story of Fred’s Bookshop at the heart of village life (now on display in the shop). We also organised an event, with a live podcast collaboration and of course there was cake! We’re still enjoying reading all the postcards and good wishes we received. Next in the pipeline is a new website to help us share more about who we are with the world outside of the social media bubble!