An interview with Goldiers LLC

Biblio checks in with Goldiers LLC to learn more about their book business, collecting interests and more! To view and shop their inventory, click here.

When did you get started in bookselling?

February 1991.

What drew you to bookselling?

My father is a retired bookseller.

Did you have any mentors in becoming a bookseller?

My American father.

What are your specialties as a dealer?

I currently only sell antiquarian maps and prints. My previous skills were as a bookbinder, book map and print restorer, antiquarian leather book specialist and fine art dealer.

What's the most amazing book you've ever sold?

The Spider and the Fly. 16th century illustrated English book that was banned by Henry the VIII due to it's anti royalty illustrations. The book was actually thrown away by the owner then recovered by the cleaner at a stately home.

What is your favorite part of being a bookseller?

Being able to own and sell pieces of history.

Do you have an open storefront or have you in the past?

I have had several shops in the past but decided to close them all in 1999 to concentrate on the internet.

If so, do/did you have any bookstore pets?

No

What is the funniest / strangest / scariest thing that ever happened in your store?

I was once raided by Customs and Excise. It was a false lead but was very scary at the time.

What is your favorite bookshop (other than your own)?

No one shop stands out ahead of the rest. The best experiences for me was building libraries for stately homes. Bookshops now seem less exciting some how.

What do you personally like to read? Collect?

Nothing. I don't read or collect. My love is art but the whole collection went to my first wife.

What's your favorite book you personally own? Would you sell it, if the price were right?

I don't own any books now. There are just a handful of rarities in storage that will need rebinding when I am ready to start bookbinding again.

What one book would you buy if price were no object?

I would love to own a English incunabula.

If you were stranded on a desert island and could bring three books, what would they be?

Survival guide books.