Former SPCK shops: Church Times letters / Shops withdrawn from auction

Church Times Letters

This week's Church Times has several letters that relate to my news item from last week's paper, 'Former SPCK shops to be auctioned'. An extract from the letter from Mrs Margery Roberts about the Westminster premises (click through for the whole thing):

This bookshop is leased by the Society of the Faith to the SPCK. Some months ago, we were asked to consider an assignment of that lease to St Stephen the Great (SSG). We made considerable efforts to obtain appropriate and satisfactory information about SSG's finances and management structure, but, in the end, our trustees had to consider the proposed assignment without any reassuring material. They turned down the application, and the SPCK then decided to surrender the lease on the break date provided for in the lease, which happens to be this May.

Mrs Roberts says that my report 'may have been misleading', but I'm not quite sure what she means by this. I said in the report that "The Westminster bookshop at Faith House was closed on 11 April", but I didn't go into any further detail apart from a sentence or two about the rare books side of things.

Shops are withdrawn from auction

The four shops due to be auctioned by Colliers CRE in London on 13 May have been withdrawn from the auction (Thomas mentioned this in the comments last week). I understand that the shops have been withdrawn because there are covenants in the deeds which restrict the use of the buildings in some way. The shops, in Bradford, Canterbury, Exeter, and York are apparently still for sale.

Church Times report on former SPCK shops

Church Times: Former SPCK shops to be auctioned

Update: Guide prices for the four shops for sale have now been posted on the Colliers CRE site.

14 North Parade Bradford Guide Price: £150,000
7 St Peter's Street Canterbury Guide Price: £520,000
1-2 Catherine Street, Cathedral Yard Exeter Guide Price: £500,000
28 Goodramgate York Guide Price: £320,000

St Pauls to open shop in York

PRESS RELEASE - for immediate release.

ST PAULS is delighted to announce they are to open a shop in York.

The shop at 5 King's Square, in the heart of the shopping centre of York, is a short walk from York Minster and the Shrine of St Margaret Clitherow on the famous Shambles.

Covering 2,000+ square feet, it will stock a full range of books, devotional articles, church furnishings, vestments, Christian cards, gifts, audio/visual material etc..

It will also contain a second-hand religious book department - itself a new venture for ST PAULS.

The shop will open in September and will be a valuable addition to their shops in London, Birmingham, Leeds, Hinsley Hall and Athlone (Ireland).

This will make ST PAULS the largest chain of Catholic bookshops in the country.

Stephen Moseling, Operations Co-ordinator for ST PAULS said:
"At this time of change and uncertainty within the Christian publishing and retail trades, with shops from various denominations closing, it is very exciting for us at ST PAULS to be opening a shop in York. Over the past 18 months many Christian publishers have expressed concerns about the future of Christian retail, but with the opening of our shop in York my hope is that we can reassure them, and the public, that ST PAULS is determined to keep a Christian presence on the High Street. As in all our shops, we will be at the service of Christians of all denominations and we ask for their support and prayers at this exciting time."

ST PAULS is an activity of the Society of St Paul, a worldwide religious congregation of priests and brothers whose apostolate is to proclaim the Gospel through the various means of communication. See www.stpauls.it

Further information may be obtained from Stephen Moseling at the above address or via email stephen (at) stpauls.org.uk

Links:
St Pauls UK
Società San Paolo

Former SPCK staff gathering

A gathering of former SPCK bookshop staff is being organised. It will be at 2 pm on Wednesday 14th May at The Bear public house, 71 High Street, Esher, London, Surrey, KT10 9RQ. This is a 5 to 10 minute walk from Sandown Park where the Christian Resources Exhibition will be taking place. Publishers reps are welcome to come and say hello. Some members of the press have been invited, but there is no compulsion to speak to them.

Phelim McIntyre, a regular contributor to the comments here, is organising it and I believe still has some free CRE tickets. You can e-mail him on phelimmcintyre (at) hotmail.com - I'm sure he will respond to questions left in the comments as well.

I'm planning to be there. As an aside - please note that the telephone number that I have posted on this site is no longer working. The answerphone still works, but I can't get the messages. It isn't anything to do with the fact I have lost the phone or anything embarrassing like that.

SSG sells four shops

Bradford, Canterbury, Exeter and York to close

Four SPCK shop buildings owned by St Stephen the Great Charitable Trust are up for sale:

Bradford
Canterbury
Exeter
York

These were gifted to SSG by SPCK on 31 October 2006 along with fixtures and fittings and stock. The net book value given to the properties in the 2007 SPCK Annual Report was £1.665 million.

The shops will be sold at auction in London by Colliers CRE on 13th May 2008.

I have been told that SSG also hold the freehold to the Truro shop, but I need clarification on that point. If so it will be the only shop building still owned by SSG if and when the sales of the other properties go through.

The other shops are all rented or, in the case of 6 shops, owned by SPCK but subject to a 7 year
covenant. Details of the status of the various shops can be found here.

News reports:
• The Bookseller: SSG to sell four shops

Cardiff
On a happier note - there are plans to open a new shop in place of the former SPCK in Cardiff. Details here.

London
I can confirm that the London shop at Faith House, Tufton Street, Westminster closed on 11th April 2008. This post on the subject has been updated with pictures.

To find all of the SPCK/SSG posts on this site see the Save the SPCK category.

Former SPCK shop roundup

I thought it would be useful to have a definitive list of the SSG (former SPCK) shops and their current status along with information about who owns the building (as that will be the most important factor influencing the likely future for each shop).

This is the situation as I understand it on 19th June 2008. Please note that there are likely to be some errors here for a few days as the situation is continually changing. The details I have put here are no doubt incomplete - it would take a long time to tell the whole story for each shop but I have tried to explain the situation concisely. If you can help by improving or correcting what I've written it would be much appreciated.

In north to south order (more or less):

Newcastle
Building owned by SPCK, but subject to 7 year covenant(1). The shop closed in early June 2008 when SSG LLC declared itself bankrupt and told staff they needed to reapply for their jobs with ENC Management Co. As of 19 June the shop was open, staffed by temporary agency staff.

Carlisle
The building was rented. The shop closed on 31st March 2008 was reopened with new staff. I understand that the shop is now closed and that the building has reverted to the landlord (the Dean and Chapter of Carlisle Cathedral).

Durham
Durham Cathedral bookshop. There was controversy in October / November 2007 when the manager was sacked following negotiations about the possible transfer of the shop. The cathedral authorities allowed this to occur without public comment. A new company has now been set up to run this shop. The shop is currently open.

York
Shop building owned by SSG (gifted by SPCK, October 2006)(2). The shop building was to be sold but it was later withdrawn from the sale. The shop closed in early June 2008 when SSG LLC declared itself bankrupt and told staff they needed to reapply for their jobs with ENC Management Co. It is possible that the shop is now open, staffed by temporary agency staff.

Bradford
Shop building owned by SSG (gifted by SPCK, October 2006)(2). The shop is currently open. The shop building was to be sold but it was later withdrawn from the sale.

Sheffield
Shop building rented. The staff were sacked on February 5th and the shop closed following an exchange of press releases between SSG and the Cathedral authorities, but it has now reopened with new staff. The shop is currently closed. It is not known whether this is temporary or permanent.

Lincoln
The building is rented. The staff were sacked on February 5th and the shop closed. The shop was reopened, but closed again on Friday March 14th. The property is being advertised as available to rent (property Reference: CP7383). The shop is closed.

Chester
Building owned by SPCK, but subject to 7 year covenant(1). The shop closed for a time in early June 2008 when SSG LLC declared itself bankrupt and told staff they needed to reapply for their jobs with ENC Management Co. There are reports that the shop is now open two days a week.

Norwich
The building is rented (?). The staff were sacked on February 5th and the shop closed. I am told that the cafe at the Norwich shop closed on 2 June and the shop itself closed on 14 June. The stock and fixtures and fittings have apparently been removed.

Leicester
This shop was said to be independent, but I don't know whether that is the case or the details of the arrangement. It has been renamed 'Christian Resources' and has a basic website here. The shop is currently open.

Birmingham
The status of this shop has changed several times in the last couple of months. I have heard reports that this shop closed in early June 2008. It is not known whether this closure is temporary or permanent.

Cambridge
The building is rented. The shop building was advertised to be let and closed in June 2008.

Worcester
Building owned by SPCK, but subject to 7 year covenant(1). The staff were sacked on 7th February and the shop was apparently being run by just the manager. The shop then closed in early June 2008 when SSG LLC declared itself bankrupt and told staff they needed to reapply for their jobs with ENC Management Co. It is not known whether this closure is temporary or permanent.

Hereford
Building owned by SPCK, but subject to 7 year covenant(1). It has been said in the comments on this site that this shop is closed, but I have no further information. Another report says that the shop is now semi-independent. Can anyone confirm this?

Cardiff
The shop was in the City Church United Reformed Church and SSG had the premises at a peppercorn rent. The shop closed permanently on 31st March 2008, but there are plans for something new - see this webpage. I am told that the Churches Together Bookshop in Cardiff looks set to open at the end of July 2008.

Bristol
The original building was sold by SPCK and was not part of the transfer to SSG. The building used by the shop for the last year had been rented. The shop was closed permanently towards the end of March 2008.

London
The building was rented. The shop was closed on Friday 11th April 2008.

Canterbury
Shop building owned by SSG (gifted by SPCK, October 2006)(2). This shop was to close, but was then reprieved. The shop building was to be sold but it was later withdrawn from the sale. The shop might have closed in early June 2008 - confirmation required. It is not known whether this closure is temporary or permanent.

Salisbury
Building owned by SPCK, but subject to 7 year covenant(1). As far as I know this shop remains open two days a week.

Winchester
Building owned by SPCK, but subject to 7 year covenant(1). The current manager rents the building from SSG but the shop is now independent in terms of stock etc. The shop is open.

Chichester
The building is an historic church owned by the Diocese of Chichester. SSG uses it rent free but are responsible for the upkeep of the fabric of the building. At one point a plan to turn it back into a church was mentioned by Mark Brewer. A new company has been set up to run this shop. The shop is open.

Exeter
Shop building owned by SSG (gifted by SPCK, October 2006)(2). The shop made the news in October 2007 when the entire staff resigned. The shop building was to be sold but it was later withdrawn from the sale. On 11th June 2008 the shop was reported as being closed but a notice says that this is a temporary state of affairs.

Truro
Shop building possibly owned by SSG (gifted by SPCK, October 2006)(2) or owned by SPCK and subject to a seven year covenant. I am told that this shop is now semi-independent. The shop is
open.


Notes:
(1) If certain conditions are met the ownership of these buildings transfers from SPCK to SSG after 7 years - I make that October 2013. From the 2007 SPCK Annual Report: "SPCK also agreed to grant leases to SSGCT, at peppercorn rents, on certain other freehold properties for a period of seven years, after which time they will be transferred to SSGCT if the SPCK Bookshops Group remains in operation on an agreed basis."
(2) Again, from the Annual Report: "In the event, it was decided by a unanimous vote at the trustees' meeting that the bookshops should be transferred to St Stephen the Great Charitable Trust. This charity undertook not only to take on all the staff and to try to keep all the shops open, but also to ensure that the stockholding carried a breadth of materials from a variety of Christian denominations, including those of differing views on contentious current debates. This transfer seemed significantly better than any achievable alternative, leaving the staff in place and the Society with the opportunity to re-group and begin to move towards a more sustainable financial future"

In case anyone is confused:
SSG: Saint Stephen the Great Charitable Trust run by Mark and Phil Brewer. Took over the running of the bookshops in October 2006. Also known as Third Space Books on some occasions.
SPCK: Anglican Missionary society founded in 1698. Former owners of the bookshop chain. SSG was allowed to trade under the SPCK name until October 2007.

Summary of ownership of the buildings:
If my maths and information are correct:
• 4 or 5 shop buildings were given to SSG.
• 6 or 7 shop buildings are still owned by SPCK, but subject to a 7 year covenant.
• The rest of the buildings are rented or (in one or two cases?) subject to a rent-free arrangement of some sort.

SSG / SPCK bookshop reports

1. I have learned that the Cambridge SSG shop is to close and that the building is being let. I understand that the current rent, £54,000 per year, is the highest of all the shops. The shop has has 1496 sq feet of sales and storage space and is to be let on the remainder of a lease that will expire in 2012. The agent is Colliers CRE in Cambridge.

2. The Bookseller reports that USDAW is preparing 20 SSG tribunal cases.

3. Lincolnshire Echo report today - SSG "is looking for churches or similiar organisations which would donate space for a new branch in the city". I don't have the original article, but UTB has kindly posted some of it here.

4. Tomorrows Church Times mentions the Carlisle situation (thanks Thomas) Unfortunately the situation may have changed since it went to press.

Unholy row erupts over bookshop jobs

Another article from the News & Star: Unholy row erupts over bookshop jobs. This relates to the Carlisle situation.

In its statement, SSG said that it took over the chain in October 2006 and is now operated in a highly competitive retail environment.

The company said SPCK had been desperate to rid itself to the entire chain. The chain was losing hundreds of thousands of pounds a year.

Most of the shops have thrived under the management of two Texan brothers, Mark and Phil Brewer, who run SSG, said the statement, and the worst is now over. The charity continues to look for innovative ways to sell Christian books.

Has Winchester SPCK / SSG gone independent?

An announcement in Winchester Diocesan circular for April 08 ('Ministry' - Resource Pack for Clergy & Readers) reads:

Winchester Christian Bookshop - I am pleased to advise that the former SPCK bookshop in Winchester has now become an independent concern operating under the name of 'Winchester Christian Bookshop'. The owner and manager is Mr Christoph Jacob, who worked in SPCK for some fourteen years, including a period in Winchester as Assistant Manager to William Cole. Mr Jacob is keen to operate his shop along the SPCK practices, but also to make some changes to improve on customer service and to reconnect with the community. He would be delighted to welcome clergy and lay people from the Diocese and discuss any specific requirements you may have. His telephone number is 01962 866617

+Michael Winton


Thanks to James for the tip.

Whether the shop is really independent or whether there is some sort of franchise deal going on remains to be seen. If anyone has info let us know.

I also remain confused about the status of certain other 'independent' shops - Leicester for instance. Are they essentially franchises?

In other news - the OrthodoxNet.com Blog has posted the SSG video (the one where they are
rescuing Britain's Christian heritage).

Bristol, Cardiff and Carlisle SSG / SPCK shops to close

Several people have posted in the comment thread below about the closure of the Bristol and Cardiff SSG (former SPCK) bookshops.

This from Richard:

SPCK Bristol has closed for good. I walked past the shop this lunch time, went up to the door to read the sign and saw Mr Phil Brewer peering out at me. He waved heartily, I waved heartily and then I moved on. Rapidly. No point in having a conversation. Nothing really to say. Well, not that would be constructive. The shop was being packed up and that's an end to it all in Bristol.

The keys were left with Wesley Owen over the weekend and when Mr Brewer went to pick them up I gather he mentioned that there was no intention to open up in Bristol again. That may or may not be true.

What a sad end to nearly 200 years of Christian bookselling by SPCK in Bristol.


I am told that the Cardiff shop is to close on Monday. Cardiff was the only SSG shop in Wales.

Update (Thursday 27th 9.30am): The forthcoming closure of the Carlisle shop on Monday the 31st March has also been confirmed.

Update (Monday 31st): News and Star: Cathedral bookshop to close

Stand Firm comments on SPCK / SSG

From the Stand Firm blog:

In more ways than one, it looks like a very good thing that the St Stephen the Great Charitable Trust (SSG) have taken over the bookstores of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

Stand Firm is one of the most read conservative Anglican blogs. I don't know whether Sarah Hey, the writer, has made this pronouncement having only read the Ruth Gledhill feature. I have asked her to clarify her remark.

Visitors from Stand Firm - you can read the whole of the SPCK bookshop saga in the 'Save the SPCK' category of this site.

As an aside I was quite pleased with one comment left on the site about me and my leaning:

"Mr Walker clearly leans to the left. Why should we trust anything he has to say about anything?"

A balanced approach if ever there was one.

Date for SPCK bookshop tribunal set

A date has been set for the case of one of the former SPCK / SSG bookshop employees to be heard before an employment tribunal. The case, Alison Speddings vs Mark Brewer, will be heard at the Sheffield Employment Tribunal on Monday 9th, Tuesday 10th and Wednesday 11th June 2008. Alison will be represented by USDAW, the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers.

I can't say a lot more except to say that Alison is entirely happy for this information to be made public. The tribunal is, as I understand it, open to the public.

Media enquiries - please get in touch.

Links:

• Employment Tribunal - Homepage
• Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers: Homepage

SSG / SPCK in The Times

Feature by Ruth Gledhill in today's paper*: SPCK bookshop staff fear final chapter

*At least, I assume it is. I was told a few days ago that it should be, but it doesn't appear in the list of articles posted on the website. We'll find out in the morning.

Update (Saturday PM): The article is in the actual paper version of the paper - page 83 in the 'Register' section.

SSG / SPCK in the Lincolnshire Echo

Front page on the Lincolnshire echo website: Texan brothers in city store takeover dispute.

Update (18th March): Follow up article - Christian bookshop staff 'sacked via e-mail'

Lincoln SSG (former SPCK) shop to close this week

This photo (and the one below) were taken in Lincoln this afternoon.

SSG advertise in the Jobcentre as the 'SPCK bookshop'

SSG are advertising themselves as the 'SPCK bookshop' in the Job centre in Lincoln, despite the fact that (according to the SPCK website) SPCK have forbidden them from using the name, and SSG have stated they will trade under the Saint Stephen the Great name.

Here is the job description in question:

Job Title SALES ASSISTANT
LOS/18198
Location LINCOLN, LINCOLNSHIRE
Hours 15-35 HOURS PER WEEK, TUES TO SAT, BETWEEN 9AM AND 5PM
Wage £5.52 - £6 PER HOUR
Work Pattern Days , Weekends
Employer SPCK Bookshop
Pension No details held
Duration TEMPORARY ONLY

Description
Retail experience preferred. Full training will be given. Duties to include serving the public, cash handling, stock replenishment, general housekeeping of the store and any other related tasks as required. This is a temporary position for 6 months but could become permanent for the right candidate.

Please call at the store Wednesday, Thursday or Friday only for further information.

How to apply
You can go and see the employer about this job without telephoning beforehand. Ask for Ian Vollands at SPCK Bookshop, 30A Sincil Street, Lincoln, 30 Sincil Street, Lincoln, LN5 7ET.

To find the job go to 'search for a job' at the bottom of this page. Put in reference number LOS/18198 . I couldn't manage to make a direct link work I'm afraid.

Thanks to UTB for the tip.

Also:
New on the SSG website: pictures of the consecration of 'St Stephen the Great'.

SSG article in Christian Marketplace

There is an article about the SSG (former SPCK) shops in the latest issue of CCP's 'Christian Marketplace' magazine. It is available online here: Christian Marketplace: Bleak month for SSG Staff and customers.

On Saturday I went into the Cambridge SSG shop for a look around. The photograph below shows the posters that were in the window:

Canterbury SPCK in the Diocesan Newsletter

The March issue of 'Outlook', the Diocese of Canterbury newspaper, has the SPCK bookshop story as its main front page headline:


A couple of quotes:
Closure notices on SPCK's Bookshop in Canterbury have been taken down after Outlook contacted the Texas-based Chairman of the owners, the St Stephen the Great Charitable Trust. However Canterbury Cathedral Shop is looking at ways to fill the gap should this be just a temporary reprieve.

In October 2007, against a background of disturbing allegations about the affairs of the ailing bookshop chain in the church and national press, both the Bishop and Simon Kington resigned from SSG citing 'conflicts of interest' and currently SPCK (with its lawyers) is "trying to work through the agreement with SSG". One of the issues could be the name. SPCK has insisted that SSG stop using their name for the bookshops, but few, if any, shop facias have changed! On its website SSG claimed in December to have "successfully re-energized their financial performance in order to make them self-supporting and hence, viable retail outlets for Christian bookselling".

The full newspaper can be downloaded here, but it is a large download (5.7mb) and was running quite slowly when I tried. In order to spare the diocesan servers I have put up a jpeg version of the front page containing the whole story here (jpeg, 345kb, will open in new window)

In related news
I have heard that the Sheffield SSG/SPCK shop reopened last week. Apologies for being behind with the news.

SSG / former SPCK bookshop developments

Phone lines go down
The phone lines at the SSG / former SPCK bookshops went down yesterday lunchtime. At the time of writing (Friday 8.30am) phoning any of the bookshop numbers gives you three beeps followed by 'This number does not receive incoming calls'. There have also been reports that the PDQ machines which take credit card payments will be affected.

Bookseller article
There's an article in the Bookseller by Graeme Neill: Christian chain mulls franchising.

Cambridge reprieve?
I have heard that there is to be a reprieve for the Canterbury SSG / former SPCK bookshop. The closure notices in the windows have been taken down. I have no information on the details, whether it is temporary or permanent etc. More about this within the next few days.

Norwich
Another article on the Network Norwich site: Norwich SPCK closure goes on as union steps in. I notice that there is a comment from a bishop on this page, albeit a retired one. Bishop David Leake is the former bishop of Argentina. This is possibly (please correct me of I'm wrong) the first supportive public statement of any sort by any bishop about the plight of the former SPCK shops - lets hope it isn't the last.

Publisher makes statement
My own publisher SCM-Canterbury press has made this statement on its website.

SSG on BBC Look East

A 2 minute news item about the Norwich and Cambridge SSG shops was broadcast on BBC Look East tonight. You can watch it via the latest stories page on the Look East site, or this should be a direct link. Several former SPCK staff speak in the piece as does Phil Brewer. The Norwich shop is reported as not opening today despite the sign on the door saying it would do.

A transcript for those who can't see the video:

The sign says it all. New staff are needed at both East Anglian shops. The Norwich branch was due to reopen today, but customers were met with the lights off. Jim Channell and four other staff were fired by e-mail after refusing to sign new contracts.

Jim Channell: That effectively puts all our part timers on zero hours, it means that overtime for all staff is completely unpaid, and it also means, I am absolutely certain, that we would not be able to do any event which wasn't Eastern Orthodox in style or content.

The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge was set up in 1698 by Anglican priest Thomas Bray. Two years ago all twenty three bookshops were sold to an Eastern Orthodox charity called St Stephen the Great. Run by two Texan brothers, they deny they've acted improperly and say they've operated within UK employment law.

Phil Brewer: When people say well it would be nice if we did this and it would be nice to do that, absolutely, it would be nice if everybody got up every day and didn't have to work and, you know, didn't have to worry about pay cheques etcetera, but the bottom line is is that there has to be fiscal constraints to all decisions.

Lucy Sparrow worked in the Cambridge shop for 19 years. She says the problems are more than just about staff contracts.

Lucy Sparrow: We weren't being allowed to order any stock, and so when it gets to Christmas, no general Christmas stock in the shop, no general Easter stock in the shop now. It gets down to that sort of level - you can't actually do your job.

It's not know when the Norwich branch will reopen. The staff complaints are now being investigated by the Shopworker's Union.

Louise Holmes, BBC Look East

Various technical asides: If anyone knows how to save a BBC Realplayer clip let me know. I have recorded it on my phone, but that will be rubbish. Also, if you try to watch the programme via "See the latest programme in full" you may not find it as it seemed only to be on the BBC Cambridgeshire version. I've learnt a lot about BBC Look East tonight.

Please excuse previous complex instructions, since deleted.

In related news:

• There was no sign of life at the Sheffield shop today from what I've heard. A sign on the
door promised it would reopen today, Monday the 18th of February.
• The Facebook group "A group for all those people who mourn the tragic demise of SPCK
Bookshops" is now up to 200 members. If you are on Facebook and would like to join or
invite some people who might feel the same way then please do.