Is that the last of their shops?
I think the Ian Allan group owns the freehold of the building (or did until fairly recently at least)I'd guess that they got hit with a large rent hike
Ah, OK, so this presumably why this outlet has lasted longer than the others - such as Manchester and Birmingham?I think the Ian Allan group owns the freehold of the building (or did until fairly recently at least)
As the company has contracted in recent years, I don’t think their heart has been in book selling for some time
I'd guess that they got hit with a large rent hike, which coupled with a decrease in turnover to make them unprofitable. They seem to be in locations which were once unpopular/cheap but which have become popular/trendy, such as Manchester Piccadilly station approach.
Sad news, but not surprising. I haven’t been there for a good five years, but when I did go, it was fairly regularly and I usually spent at least £50-100 per visit.
Why did I stop going? Products cheaper online, including magazine subscriptions and using, I hate to say places like Amazon for books if it’s half the price that IA wanted. I do still use small specialist places, MDS, Bill Hudson etc. I always found the shop, when I went anyway, to be full of the people who touched everything, but never actually bought anything. They also had questionable personal hygiene. Apart from the manager, I didn’t find the staff particularly friendly either.
So sad, but I’m surprised it’s lasted so long. I’m sure the Covid pandemic has hit them hard seeing as Central London is like a ghost town the last few months.
But how often did you buy? I think that was the problem at all of their shops. Retail demand is down across the board and having a large proportion of customers who only browse makes that much worse. Of course the fact the Ian Allan no longer publish a lot of the books they sell must have hit their margins significantly as well.A quick squiz at the books...
Must disagree with your remarks over personal hygiene and staff friendliness. I always found the staff OK. There was however a nearby shop which specialised in transport related books at bargain prices which I suspect offered some competition to Ian Allen.Sad news, but not surprising. I haven’t been there for a good five years, but when I did go, it was fairly regularly and I usually spent at least £50-100 per visit.
Why did I stop going? Products cheaper online, including magazine subscriptions and using, I hate to say places like Amazon for books if it’s half the price that IA wanted. I do still use small specialist places, MDS, Bill Hudson etc. I always found the shop, when I went anyway, to be full of the people who touched everything, but never actually bought anything. They also had questionable personal hygiene. Apart from the manager, I didn’t find the staff particularly friendly either.
So sad, but I’m surprised it’s lasted so long. I’m sure the Covid pandemic has hit them hard seeing as Central London is like a ghost town the last few months.
I suspect Tubeboy may have meant the customers' hygeine, not the staff's.Must disagree with your remarks over personal hygiene and staff friendliness. I always found the staff OK. There was however a nearby shop which specialised in transport related books at bargain prices which I suspect offered some competition to Ian Allen.
Must disagree with your remarks over personal hygiene and staff friendliness. I always found the staff OK. There was however a nearby shop which specialised in transport related books at bargain prices which I suspect offered some competition to Ian Allen.
The bargain bookshop was on the corner diagonally opposite the Old Vic. When this building was redeveloped it relocated to a unit on the north side of Lower Marsh, but has been closed for several years now.
The only ‘specialist’ transport bookshop in the capital is at the London Transport Museum. This has no where near the range that Ian Allan carries. Some of the smaller publishers/ self published authors will doubtless lament the loss of this institution.
The actual building the bargain bookshop was in was demolished and replaced with a taller building, part of which is occupied by a branch of a chain cafePretty sure the bargain bookshop is now a Starbucks or possibly another chain coffees shop .
It's a shame, what the "old man" built up has pretty much gone. Travel agency sold off. The "property" is little more than their various former premises rented out. Their car dealerships, where they used to have the franchise for several mainstream brands across Surrey, have now retreated to one site which does oddball American import cars, situated up a residential road.Looking at the company accounts shows that it is now principally a property and car dealership company. Publishing brought in less than 10% of turnover.