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Family-run bookshop Chapter and Verse in Banffshire will close for good at the end of this month after 14 years of trade.
Owner Cathleen King, 73, told The Bookseller she had “basically been closed down by the internet”. After her outlet is gone, there will be no bookshop for 40 miles in the Scottish district, she said.
“So many people are buying online now, we have basically been shut down by the internet. When we first started we had a lot of elderly customers but now they have gone and the young people prefer to buy online. I think a lot of other businesses will go the same way because that’s how people’s buying habits are going now.” She added that digital books and e-readers had also eaten into her trade.
“I have taken nothing out of the business for two years, I have been putting money into the shop to make sure the bills are paid. Last year was the first time in 14 years I made a loss so I decided it was the right time to close down. It is said because it has been a family business all this time, but it is the right decision. I tried to keep it going but it couldn’t be done. If my husband had been alive, I’m sure he would have closed it down two years ago.”
The shop was run by Cathleen and her late husband William before he died, when her grandson Daniel stepped into help. It is currently running a 30% off sale before its last day of trading on 27th April.