Beattie & Forbes Booksellers

Napier's iconic independent bookshop

James and Kathleen ready for Art Deco Weekend.

Beattie and Forbes Booksellers started life as The Office Supply Company, Napier. Opened by Tom Sullivan in 1924 on the corner of Hastings and Tennyson Streets. When the Earthquake struck in 1931 the shop was open. Tom and one of his assistants, Aline Buckley, got out but tragically his other assistant, Nellie Rolls, was killed. Aline worked in the store (by now on the opposite corner) for about 50 years. When she finally retired the store had become Beattie and Forbes Booksellers, so named by Graham Beattie and Barry Forbes in 1968.

Since then the shop has changed hands a couple of times and is now owned by James and Megan Landon begin_of_the_skype_highlighting     end_of_the_skype_highlighting, both bibliophiles and from retail, (James) and academic (Megan) backgrounds. We are ably supported by Kathleen who has been with Beattie and Forbes for 20 years, Michelle another experienced bookseller.
Our store has just relocated to 70 Tennyson St store after 5 years in Lower Emerson St.

With a reputation for great service and still Napier’s only Independent Bookseller we hold a broad range of fiction, non-fiction and children’s books. We specialise in Art, Art Deco, Fashion and Architecture as well as having an extensive range New Zealand History, Maori History and Culture. We also carry a comprehensive selection of New Zealand fiction and poetry.

If you do not see what you want on this site please contact us, we are importers of books from around the world. We also offer a rare and second hand book search service for those hard to find treasures. We are happy to gift wrap your book free of charge and have a great selection of cards to personalise that gift before sending in NZ or around the world.

We also have the most generous loyalty scheme on the high street and a lay-by service. Please ask in store for details.

Whilst we carry a very large range there are items which we carry but are not always in stock. You may still order these items, we will ensure that your order is placed quickly and will keep in touch with you until your order is fulfilled. If you cannot find what you want please do ask - we order online from around the world importing stock every week. We are able to get stock from the USA within a week and are able to do this without passing on large postage costs as we do it in bulk. This represents great value for money at the moment.
Basically: the answer is yes - now what was the question?

Beattie & Forbes Booksellers, Napier – books are our passion