Waterstone's essentials
About Waterstone's
Waterstone's mission is to be the leading Bookseller on the High Street and online providing customers the widest choice, great value and expert advice from a team passionate about Bookselling. Waterstone's aims to interest and excite its customers and continually inspire people to read and engage in books.
Now part of HMV Group, Waterstone's first opened in Old Brompton Road, London, in 1982 and currently trades from more than 300 stores, on high streets and in shopping centres, and through numerous university campuses in the UK, Republic of Ireland and continental Europe (Brussels and Amsterdam) as well as on the Isle of Man, Jersey and the Isle of Wight.
No two Waterstone's bookshops are the same. Sophisticated stock management systems ensure that each bookshop has its own unique range profile and space at the front of store to promote a choice of books picked by that branch. These 'Recommends' bays are genuine staff picks.
Our reputation is built upon the knowledge and enthusiasm of our 4,500 booksellers. Our booksellers love great books and are dedicated to finding the titles that our customers want.
We strive to create places where people who are interested in books can go to browse, a place that encourages new readers to expand horizons and that is home to booksellers that are passionate about the books that they sell.
An average sized Waterstone's store merchandises a range of around 30,000 individual books, with 200,000 titles in the largest store. With over one million books in print, and around 120,000 new consumer titles published every year (compared with around 10,000 in the 1950s), the expert recommendations and advice of the company's booksellers are key ingredients in its success.
Waterstone's flagship branch on Piccadilly in London is the biggest bookshop in Europe. With specialist floors concentrating on fiction, academic genres and children's books (among many other subjects) it is a great resource for booklovers everywhere. A great 5th floor bar helps to relax our customers in between heavy bouts of serious browsing. Waterstone's in Gower Street, London, is our flagship academic branch, and Europe's biggest academic book specialist. We have similar superstores throughout the UK, including Glasgow's Sauchiehall Street, Bridlesmith Gate Nottingham, Deansgate Manchester, and Milsom Street in Bath.
Promotions and Events
Waterstone's runs regular national promotions, such as our Book of the Month and Children's Book of the Month selections, and review hundreds of new books every year in our quarterly magazine and on our website. Customers have grown used to the reliability of these recommendations. We cater for a wide range of tastes, and have hosted events with authors including Jacqueline Wilson, Bill Clinton and Haruki Murakami and JK Rowling.
HMV Group
Together with HMV music stores , Waterstone's is part of the HMV Group plc , which launched on the stock market in 2002. Waterstone's trades as Waterstone's, Hatchards (in London) and Hodges Figgis (in Dublin).
Books Quarterly
Waterstone's launched its magazine for booklovers, Books Quarterly, in 2001. Available through all Waterstone's branches, the magazine brings together an entertaining mix of news, author features and interviews as well as reviews of over one hundred books in each issue.
Subscribe to Books Quarterly
View Books Quarterly online at Wbqonline.com
Find out how you can get your copies for free with the Waterstone's Card
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Bestsellers
Top pre-orders
1.GCSE Study Skills
James Lee
2.Jamie at Home
Jamie Oliver
3.The Sherwood Social Care Diary and Directory
Stephen M. Treacy, et al.
4.Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
J.K. Rowling
5.The Mission Song
John Le Carre
6.A Spot of Bother
Mark Haddon
7.French Vocabulary for Key Stage 3 and Common Entrance
John Ellis, et al.
8.The Other Side of the Bridge
Mary Lawson
9.The Afghan
Frederick Forsyth
10.Against the Gods
Peter Bernstein
1.Jamie at Home
Jamie Oliver
2.Nigella Express
Nigella Lawson
3.Outcast
Michelle Paver
4.Il "Divo"
Il "Divo"
5.Rebus XX
Ian Rankin
6.Splinter - Waterstones Exclusive
7.The Pink Cookbook
8.My Fat, Mad Teenage Diary
Rae Earl
9.Florence and Tuscany
Tim Jepson
10.Professional Studies
Rob Hyland, et al.
Back to school
Check out our Back to school offers from the most reliable names in education, including Letts, Nelson Thornes, Banana Reading and some fabulous OUP exclusives for Waterstone's.
See all our great Back to school offers
Jamie at Home
Pre-order Jamie at Home: Cook Your Way to the Good Life by Jamie Oliver for just £12.49 that's a saving of 50% off the RRP.
Pre-order your copy now for half price!
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Latest releases and coming soon My Manchester United Years
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About Waterstone's