BooksActually

Coordinates: 40°44′00″N 73°59′27″W / 40.7333°N 73.9908°W

BooksActually
Industry Specialty retail
Founded 2005
Founder Kenny Leck, Karen Wai
Headquarters Singapore, Singapore
Number of locations
 1 store, 1 kiosk
Area served
 Tiong Bahru
Products New, used and rare books, magazines, films and DVDs
Owner Kenny Leck, Karen Wai, Renee Ting
Website http://www.booksactually.com/

BooksActually is an independent bookstore located in Singapore's Tiong Bahru district.[1] It is regularly listed among top independent bookstores worldwide for its quirky charm and literary flavour.[2][3][4]

History and description

BooksActually was established by Kenny Leck and Karen Wai in 2005 on the second floor of a shophouse along Telok Ayer Street with capital pooled from savings and family.[5] The bookstore subsequently moved to Ann Siang Hill, a second outlet at Club Street, and most recently to Yong Siak Street in Tiong Bahru.[6] BooksActually regularly hosts literary events including book launches and poetry readings, and are a hub in the growing Singapore literary scene.[7]

BooksActually is a regular organiser of pop-up stores at various retail locations around Singapore, currently manning a second location at Millenia Walk. It hosted the Monocle pop-up store in 2013,[8] and was the organiser of the first annual Singapore Art Book Fair in Gillman Barracks in 2013[9][10]

The bookstore also produces vintage stationery and trinkets under the imprint of Birds and Co.[11] It runs a boutique publishing house, Math Paper Press, focusing on developing new literary voices in Singapore, and has published more than 80 titles since its inception in 2012.[12][13] Math Paper Press recently expanded into comics and graphic novels in 2014[14]

External links

References

  1. ↑ "BooksActually flagship". booksactually.com.
  2. ↑ "10 Inspiring Bookshops around the World". Messy Nessy Chic.
  3. ↑ "22 most beautiful bookshops in the world". skyscanner.net.
  4. ↑ "Top 5 Indie Bookstores for Literary Nomads in Singapore". City Nomads.
  5. ↑ "A Love for Books Actually - Young Upstarts". youngupstarts.com.
  6. ↑ "BooksActually – A Local Bookstore That Thrives In A Digital World". Tech in Asia.
  7. ↑ "The king of the book geeks - Read - Mobile - The Malay Mail Online". themalaymailonline.com.
  8. ↑ "Monocle Opens Pop-up Store at Books Actually - BLOUIN ARTINFO". Artinfo.
  9. ↑ DestinAsian Media Group. "First Annual Singapore Art Book Fair". DestinAsian.
  10. ↑ "Singapore Art Book Fair returns to Gillman Barracks in November". Singapore.
  11. ↑ "Top 5 Indie Bookstores for Literary Nomads in Singapore". City Nomads.
  12. ↑ "Math Paper Press". booksactually.com.
  13. ↑ "How BooksActually Actually Makes Books". OpenBrief.
  14. ↑ "BooksActually goes into comics". TODAYonline.