It’s true. The original bookshop was a pop-up to celebrate KNIGHTS OF turning one year – the team wanted to do something unique - and an inclusive pop-up on Coldharbour Lane, Brixton, opened for a week. The response was overwhelming – loudest was the call for a permanent space - after a crowdfund caught the imagination of readers across the world, we opened doors to the shop May 2019.
COVID almost ended the bookshop in its infancy. But we would not go down without a fight, and with the appointment of Meera Ghanshamdas in September 2021, the business took on a new course. We have become so much more than we were in the beginning. Starting as a children’s bookshop, we evolved into a space for all, with strongly embedded partnerships in the global majority and LGBTQIA+ communities of Brixton.
In August of 2023, Jasmina Bidé became the third director (together with Aimée Felone and Meera Ghanshamdas) at Round Table Books. Under her visionary leadership, the CIC has grown into a more enduring and sustainable organisation. Her strategic direction and innovative approach have strengthened operations, improved performance, and fostered a culture of creativity, compassion, and resilience that continues to drive the CIC forward.
We wouldn’t exist without the support of passionate people and readers! Now, 6 years later, as Brixton’s only intersectional bookshop - and a space open to all - our tiny space has become a meeting site of ideas, laughter, and sometimes love (yes, really!). There’s one thing we hear over and over again: our current shop is bursting at the seams with not only books, but also with the energy, ideas, love and the potential of our community. We want to stay in Brixton Village, at the heart of Lambeth. Support our next chapter here