The event brought together Sheffield’s independent booksellers on April 26 as the city celebrated the first year of the Indie Book Fair at Victoria and Mowbray in Neepsend.
The fair was organised by a collective of local bookshop owners, it was attended by readers, writers and publishers from all across the area, putting on display the full force of the Sheffield Indie book scene.
The day was headed by Sophie Blaney from Hillsborough Bookshop, Kate and Joe Nixon from Novel, Alex Maxwell of La Biblioteka and Sarah Scales and Rosie May of Juno Books.
Dave Hall, is a bookseller at Hillsborough Bookshop and was also involved in organising the event, he described the day as a defining moment for literacy within Sheffield.
“There’s always been a strong Independent spirit in Sheffield,” Mr Hall said. “This was all about bringing bookshops together to celebrate that, and to show people what we can offer to the community”
The main priority of the event was community. The organisers wanted to showcase the role that bookshops play, away from just selling books. They provide creative spaces and allow shop workers to speak to readers one-to-one and provide personal recommendations.
The fair which took place over the weekend saw readers flood in to grab limited book releases and hear expert speakers.
Mr Hall said: “Bookshops are a part of the community, like a local pub. We host events, workshops and give people a place to connect, something you don’t get from buying a book online.”
The weekend began with a book crawl around the city, with the main event following on Sunday, this showcased local traders and independent speakers.
The space provided at Victoria and Mowbray was flexible, allowing visitors to drift between the market space, a cafe and talk rooms featuring insight from writers and creatives.
There was an air of uncertainty initially about the event with concerns about turnout. However, the reality exceeded all expectations, with hundreds showing on the day, encouraging a repeat event next year.
Mr Hall added: “We didn’t know what it would look like or if people would show, but seeing all this amazing support shows the appetite for it.”
You can find the Sheffield Indie Book Fair on Instagram @sheffindiebookfest.