Blackwells bookshop killed off by internet
Published: 02 July, 2010
by PETER GRUNER
FIRST it was Borders at the Angel. Now another popular bookstore is to close its doors for the last time.
Blackwells, in Holloway Road, will shut at the end of the month. The shop, which opened more than a decade ago, says it can no longer compete with the internet.
Part of a successful national chain, Blackwells’ stock of academic books made it popular with students at nearby London Metropolitan University, and City and Islington College.
London Mayor Boris Johnson was a customer when he lived nearby with his family before moving to the Angel.
Part-time worker at the shop, Mohammed Ibrar, 23, said: “We are the only bookshop in the area. Students and lecturers have found us extremely useful over the years. But I understand the owners felt the shop was no longer viable. Most books are available to buy on the internet and cheaper than in shops.”