66 years in London
On Saturday 25 February, the CLC Bookshop in London held a thanksgiving celebration to mark the relocation of this Christian bookshop from its previous location on the Holborn Viaduct.
The new shop, in Ave Maria Lane, is close to Wren’s St Paul’s Cathedral and is the fourth location for the bookstore, which celebrates 66 years of being in the City of London.
On the day, the bookshop was completely filled with customers, as manager Petra Nemansky told the story of CLC London. She said, ‘The celebration of our new place coincides with the 66th year of CLC’s ministry in London. The first shop at Ludgate Hill was set up in 1946, just after WWII.
‘After that, we had a shop in front of St Paul’s tube station. Twenty years ago we moved to Holborn Viaduct, where we had a shop with two trading floors. It’s great to find a place so close to St Paul’s Cathedral again’.
The bookshop is part of CLC International, a missionary organisation with more than 180 bookshops in 58 countries. Phil Burnham, director of CLC UK, said, ‘In some of these countries, we are the only Christian bookshop. It’s not easy to be a Christian in these nations.
‘CLC is a registered charity. With the profit we make, we can support the ministry in countries where it is not yet self-sustaining. We believe God works through Christian literature, here in UK and all over the world’.
At the door, everybody received a coupon for a goodie bag with free books. During the speech by Pastor Ken Swan, from Chase Family Church, Enfield, and the songs of praise, there was hardly any standing room left!
However, nobody minded. Carol Tabassum, one of the staff members serving refreshments after the programme, said, ‘I love working in this bookshop. It’s the house of the Lord’.
