Source : PERTHNOW NEWS
A call for just four volunteers at one of Perth’s smallest bookshops has attracted almost 300 applications after the plea blew up on social media.
London Court Books, a completely volunteer-run second-hand bookshop operated by the Museum of Perth and located in Perth’s iconic London Court, put out a call for new volunteers on August 7 after four positions became available.
The response to the post reached far across Perth, with the Facebook post getting more than 1100 likes, almost 100 comments and more than 350 shares.
Perth History Association chair Reece Harley said the organisation had expected only a handful of people to respond but instead had an “overwhelming response”.
“We were hoping to get a couple more volunteers but have received over 290 applications,” he said.
“Bookshops are a pretty interesting business. It’s a little bit hard to run them these days with the popularity of online reading and people being so busy with work.
“But we really think that there is a very passionate community of book lovers, and it just seemed appropriate for us to establish a bookshop in London Court.”
The huge response has prompted the bookshop to look beyond its original four vacancies, with applications being invited for other opportunities to volunteer with the bookshop and the Museum of Perth, such as cataloguing books, back-of-house operations, online sales or volunteering at the Museum of Perth’s gallery.
“We’ll be letting people know if the shifts are available and letting them know that we’ll be keeping their names and details on our volunteer list for when future opportunities come up,” Mr Harley said.
Mr Harley said the response showed how strongly people connected with the idea of working in a bookshop.
“I think everyone’s probably harboured the idea of a simple life, reading and selling books and working in a cute little shop like London Court, surrounded by all that history and all of that character,” he said.
The shop currently has about 20 volunteers, ranging from retired teachers and engineers to university students, with some volunteering for a single three-hour shift a week and others working multiple days.
The tiny shop is stocked entirely with books donated by the community, with volunteers also responsible for cataloguing and processing donations, managing online sales, building shelving and keeping the shop running.
Mr Harley said the shop had become a respite for people from the busy CBD.
“We have people that come in and sit on the armchair and have a bit of a read and have a chat to our volunteers,” he said.
The bookshop is also helping continue a tradition that dates back to almost 90 years.
London Court opened in 1937 and had a bookshop among one of its first shops, with K. B. Arnold operating a bookshop from Shop 3 and then expanded into Shop 4.
Over the years other book shops have taken over, including the Progressive Book Shop, which specialised in socialist and communist material, and The Book Box, which sold novels, books, stationery and accessories.
After a period of not having a dedicated bookshop in the State Heritage-listed arcade for a period of time, London Court Books was established.
The Museum of Perth initiative began trading in December 2020 and then moved to another location in the arcade in May 2021. It then relocated again in 2023 and now operates from Shop 51.
The shop sells a range of second-hand books, with a focus on State, national and world history, alongside fiction, young adult and children’s books.
Most of the books are priced between $5 to $20, but Mr Harley said a cheaper rack sells some between $2 to $5 to move stock through the tiny store.
“We also sell some really beautiful wooden music boxes, which have become real collectors’ cases and great for gifts,” Mr Harley said.
“Around Christmas time, we usually sell out of our beautiful little music boxes.”
All money made from sales goes to support the Museum of Perth’s exhibitions and research.
Mr Harley said the shop also has a piece of London Court history itself, with three original wrought-iron medieval style chandeliers donated by a former tenant hung inside the shop.
One of the three is kept upstairs in storage.
Mr Harley said the extraordinary response to the call out had been a welcome reminder of the affection people still have for physical books and independent bookshops.
“It’s not quite the same accessing things through a Kindle or online to be able to have the real thing and have it on your shelf,” he said.
