‘When I get a little money I buy books and if any is left, I buy food and clothes.’
Desiderius Erasmus
A LOT of dot com companies came to grief in the 1990s because of their failure to recognise one elementary fact, that most people like to shop, and would actually rather potter and browse in the flesh than through modem.
If one place deserves to be pottered in it is the second-hand bookshop, if only for the sheer unpredictability of the stock, the chance to uncover a mint condition Eagle Annual, a copy of the McDougals baking book, circa 1956, or to lay hands on the latest cutting edge thriller by Michael Connelly. Unlike new bookshops, second-hand or antiquarian booksellers are almost entirely dependent on members of the public for their stock, barging through the front door laden with cardboard boxes or carrier bags full of unwanted titles.
The smallest bookshop is likely to contain more ideas than have been churned out in the last decade of television, and, despite millions turning to computer screens as pundits declared the death of the printed word, there remains a stubborn desire, in Cyprus as elsewhere, for reading books, the real thing.
Of course, avid readers are only too aware that the book is the greatest interactive medium of all time, you can underline it, write in the margins, fold down a page, skip ahead of the plotline. Unlike the computer screen, you can take your book to bed, to the loo, or anywhere else you fancy going. Books will beautifully furnish a house, give texture and colour, they act as perfect insulation, and for the curious guest provide the ability to form an immediate assessment of your personality from a short browse along your shelves.
One woman who has tapped into the growing demand for second-hand books here in Cyprus is Marilyn Tapaccos, who, over the past few years, has successfully opened three bookswap shops, two in Limassol and one now in Paphos.
What motivated Marilyn to get into this business?
“Passion for books, pure and simple.
“Plus the fact that I was being squeezed out of my house by the sheer volume of books, so something had to be done.
“I also felt it was important to open a place that wasn’t just a retail outlet; I wanted more of a welcoming meeting place, somewhere people could go and enjoy a coffee and a chat along with a browse. Whether people buy anything or not, at least they are aware of where to come if the mood strikes them.”
Marilyn has instigated a ‘swap’ concept in all of her shops: she offers customers the chance to buy any book, they can then read it and either hold on to it or bring it back and get 40 per cent of the original price paid towards buying any other book in the shop.
Marilyn is also looking to take in books from customers and again she will give a 40 per cent credit off the selling price of the book.
The system has worked well. Customers have been returning with piles of children’s books bought to keep grandchildren occupied during the summer holidays, while volumes of holiday reading accumulated on trips abroad stood piled high on the floor awaiting a slot in the overflowing shelf space.
After my first browse, I came away with five books in almost mint condition, bought at bargain prices.
For Marilyn’s bookswap in Paphos, take the turning off the Tomb of the Kings road which leads to the Damon Apartments and it’s on the road parallel – plenty of signs will lead you to the shop. The shops in Limassol are to be found, one near the old market, and the other near Woolworth on the seafront.
