Ruislip & Eastcote & Northwood Gazette
Unhappy ending – bookshop announces Chelsea closure
DAUNT Books in Chelsea will soon close because of crippling business rates and a diminishing population making the area feel “like a seaside town”, its manager said.
Brett Wolstencroft, 56, cofounded the company at its flagship Marylebone shop in 1990 with James Daunt, now the managing director of Waterstones.
They opened the fourth Daunt Books in Fulham Road in 2008 – replacing The Pan Bookshop – when rents and rates were “already very high”.
It has hosted book signings with Pippa Middleton, sister of the Duchess of Cambridge, and comedian and actor David Walliams.
But times got tough in 2017 when the Chelsea shop’s rates shot up by 70 per cent – a stark change that hit businesses across London.
The declining footfall helped form a “perfect storm” which made the shop unsustainable, despite the continued success of the company’s six other London branches.
“We opened in a time when rents were already very high,” said Mr Wolstencroft, who lives in Kent.
“We hoped with it being a great book shop that we would trade our way through it.
“But now it’s like being in a seaside town. There’s not as many local residents living here 365 days-a-week. The area is less busy than it used to be, that’s simply a fact. We’ve noticed it elsewhere on the street.”
He added: “As footfalls have decreased, so have our profits. The local change has been a gradual shift. We have some very loyal customers but we’re not growing by getting many new ones. It’s exceptionally sad.”
Despite the closure, Mr Wolstencroft believes the current climate for bookshops isn’t all bad.
“It’s a potty market in London but there’s places it can work much better. We’re about to open a new shop in Oxford,” he said.
“Our other London shops have been busier than ever, and the books are becoming more beautiful and interesting.
“Chelsea was one of our best shops in terms of loyal customers and excellent staff. We have been a cultural glue in the community.”
Rather than the closure being prompted by a recent rent increase, Mr Wolstencroft said they hoped there would be “an adjustment downward” to help them cope with the growing pressures. Without the help, he decided against renewing the shop’s lease before it ends in late March.
He also said the closure was not linked to a 2017 planning application that would have seen its ageing building redeveloped into offices and a restaurant.
A date for the closure hasn’t been decided, but Mr Wolstencroft said it will be in “mid February”.
The Chelsea shop’s staff will be transferred to work in the company’s other London branches. The stock of books in Chelsea will also be “absorbed” by the other shops.