Hello! And welcome to our Frequently Asked Question page! (Updated to take account of Covid-19 changes)

We are (luckily, woop!) a very busy bookshop and our booksellers try to focus on readers physically in the bookshop so this is a wee cheat sheet we’ve drawn up so you can get quick answers all in one place about JOBS, STOCK (books & zines), EVENTS, COLLABORATIONS & more general stuff. (Accessibility info is available HERE)

THANK YOU for taking the time to read, and if you have further questions do drop by the bookshop or give us a ring.

What are your opening hours? We are OPEN to the public again from Monday 20th July, but have adjusted our hours to allow us to juggle online orders & cleaning in light of the pandemic.

Mon-Sat: 11am - 6pm Sun: 11:30am - 5pm (These hours may expand back to our usual 8pm evenings later in the year)

What health & Safety measures are in place in response to Corona Virus?

• Maximum 3 browsers at a time to maintain social distancing
• ‘Sneeze Screens’ at the till to protect both staff and readers
• Hand Sanitizer at entrance to be used on arrival and exit, and spray bottles are placed throughout the shop to clean hands if you think you might have touched your face
• Masks must be worn in the shop, in accordance with new Scottish Government guidelines. If you do not have/have forgotten a mask we may provide you with a single use mask while you are in. If you are exempt from wearing a mask please let us know on arrival and we may limit the number of other browsers who are in while you’re visiting.
• One way system in place through most of the shop to help with social distancing.

What sort of bookshop is Lighthouse?

We are a radical, intersectional feminist bookshop. This means that we aim to be a truly inclusive safe space for all who need it, and we stock a large selection of books on feminism, LBGT+ writing and politics. We also keep a good general selection of fiction, poetry and various non-fiction categories. We are also an activist space so we wear our politics and passions on our sleeves (and social media) - we’re always keen to hear about issues that affect our community and campaigns and initiatives within our community.

BOOKS & STOCK SELECTION

Can you order me a book if you don’t have it?

Absolutely! Apart from the odd exception, we can order any book that’s in print in the UK (and some that aren’t) and get it within 1-10 days (depending on title availability).

We have a selection of our books on the website: https://www.lighthousebookshop.com/shop but this is just the tip of the iceberg, so do pop in/email or call if you have more requests!

I’ve written a book, would you be interested in stocking it?

We urge all authors to read the Booksellers Association’s guide to getting your books stocked in high street shops, available HERE.

Because of our limited shelf space, we have to be extremely selective when choosing which books to stock. If your book fits with Lighthouse’s particular stock profile (e.g. feminist, LBGT+, political and/or poetry) then we invite you to email us outlining the specifics of the title and the terms of supply and distribution (all detailed in the BA link above). Please do not send us Amazon links, as we have an active boycott of Amazon for their disgraceful business and employment practices. We will endeavour to reply to you swiftly but sadly we’re not always able to do this.

PLEASE NOTE: We are NOT taking in any new self-published titles in 2020. Our team is already stretched to the limits adapting to the new Covid-19 landscape and sadly this is something we have to put on hold for now. we’ll update this when we’re able to again.

My book is published by Amaz*n, would you be interested in stocking it?

No thank you. As a business committed to paying fair wages and supporting social justice we have an active boycott of amazon and all their products so we would not be in a position to stock your book. Amaz*n business practices pose an existential threat to the high street, and to bookshops in particular

Can I stock my zine/pamphlet with you? We LOVE zines, though to be honest we never have enough space for zines. If you would like us to consider your zine please shoot us an email detailing what the zine is about, how much it sells to the public for & how much it would cost the bookshop (we usually take 25-30% of the retail price). If you have images of the insides of the zines you can add as an attachment that is particularly helpful.

The zines we do best with retail between £3 and £6, are A5 or smaller, and are feminist/queer/antiracist/personal/anticapitalist/green or some combination of those.

If we think we have an audience for your zine we usually take 3copies sale or return and try them on the shelf for 1-3months depending on our agreement. If they do not sell in that time you can collect them and find them a better home. If they do then we let you know, get you paid and order more!

PLEASE NOTE: We are NOT accepting any new zines until October 2020. Our team is already stretched to the limits adapting to the new Covid-19 landscape and sadly this is something we have to put on hold for now. we’ll update this when we’re able to again.

EMPLOYMENT / WORK PLACEMENTS

I’m looking for a job, are you hiring just now?

We don’t recruit very often, and we receive so many unsolicited but brilliant CVs & cover letters that when a spot does open up we usually go back through those applications first and, so far, have always found great booksellers that way.

So do feel free to send us your CV by email (we don’t accept paper CVs) and tell us why you’d like to work for Lighthouse, what hours you are looking for/general availability and what you like to read.

We are particularly interested in hearing from candidates who are habitually underrepresented in the book trade, notably working class and care experienced, Black, Asian, Roma/Traveller and queer book lovers.

Unfortunately we can’t respond to all such emails, but we will keep them on file.

Do you offer holiday/ seasonal work?

We’re afraid not - it takes a wee while to get into the swing of things as a bookseller so we prefer all our booksellers to be with us for a few years at a time.

EVENTS, COLLABORATIONS & the Bookshop as a VENUE

Do you do events?

In pre-corona times, hosting events forms a big part of the shop’s mission, and we usually had at least two on every week. These range from author talks to discussion groups, lectures and workshops. For more information and tickets, please see our Eventbrite page or ask a bookseller in store. For now though these are on hiatus until it is safe to have gatherings in the bookhop again.

Can you tell me more about your book clubs?

Certainly. We host five regular book clubs, themed respectively around Women in STEM, LGBT+ writing, Women in Translation, Science Fiction and left-wing politics. If you would like more info about upcoming meetings and the books for discussion, please visit our Eventbrite page or ask a bookseller in store. We also offer a 10% discount on titles if they are being bought for book club.

I’d like to do an event with you, are you interested?

If you want us to host an event based around a particular book or theme that fits the shop’s ethos, feel free to send us an email outlining the specifics. (Author, Book, Possible dates)

Please also be aware that our events schedule usually fills up a couple of months in advance, so bear this in mind when contacting us. Our events are usually 1 hour long, from 7.30-8.30pm Tuesday-Friday, though some events suit a Saturday morning coffee-morning type format.

We cannot host additional events during August or from mid-December to mid-January.