A Brookland bookshop had celebrated its first anniversary in its new premises despite the decline of small businesses in the UK.
Established by Michelle Crosby in March 2025, B for Butterfly is a cosy independent bookshop that aims to match customers with the right book for them.
Inspired by her childhood book Calling B for Butterfly by Louise Lawrence, she wanted to create an environment that celebrates reading for pleasure.
Michelle, 47 said: “It kind of feels like we’ve been here forever, but also, it’s gone really quickly as well.
“The local community have just been really welcoming, and it’s something different for the area.
“We’ve always wanted to move into our own premises, so it was a big step.”
The store first opened as an online children’s bookshop in 2020, then later moved into a small space in Emporium, Sale in 2021.
The bookshop holds regular events such as book clubs, author talks, and a silent book club and provides story-time sessions for younger readers after school.
They recently hosted a book launch for Jennifer Lane’s book Underwing, which explores baby loss and nature.
“I’ve loved having events at the shop. One of my main drivers for moving into our own retail space was to be able to host author events,” said Michelle.
“I’ve really enjoyed being able to have authors in the shop and to be able to champion local authors.
“It’s also been great to see people enjoying an evening in the shop just for social reasons.”
Data from the Centre for Retail Research found that the UK lost 37 shops a day in 2024, with small businesses accounting for 84.1% of the overall closures in a year.
Michelle said that she has seen a surge in support for independent businesses, but it’s still been difficult for everyone in the retail environment.
“There’s a lot of uncertainty, and there [have] been so many political and worldwide changes.
“All we can do at a local level is focus on what we do and what we do well and try not to worry about the bigger picture too much,” she added.
She plans to focus on building the visibility of the bookshop and reaching more of the local community in Brookland for the next year.
Main photo credit: Kyra Thompson