The high street still provides tremendous opportunities for the gospel
The double award-winning Manna Christian Bookshop in Streatham, South London, opened in 1981.
It is on the route of the A23 London to Brighton vintage car rally, has survived two recessions and in February is embarking on a new venture. en spoke to the bookshop manager, Dave Lock (DL), and the chairman of trustees, Howard Giles (HG), about the past and the plans ahead.
en: So, when we see secular bookshops going to the wall and the high street in general feeling the pinch from shoppers moving off the streets to online purchasing, how have you survived in this pocket of South London?
HG: Since its beginnings, Manna has had a mission to take God’s Word out beyond the walls of the churches in the area and to provide good quality literature with a clear gospel message on the high street. Over the years many people have contributed in a sacrificial way to support the work of Manna, from those who first started the work here to Dave, who stepped out in faith when he took over the management of the shop in the 1980s.
It’s not easy meeting the rent each month, but God has provided every time, with money appearing at just the right point when outgoings need covering. God has been so faithful.
en: So how is business generally?
HG & DL: There’s no doubt that the climate is hard. People come in wanting a bargain, and often with a camera phone to take a picture and then go and buy the same item online. However, we are supported by many others who decide that saving an amount online isn’t worth as much as helping to keep the bookshop open by ordering or purchasing through us. It’s great to be able to wander in off the street, to what some have described as a little oasis on the High Road. There’s always something new to see, and hopefully buy. As one browses you find things you weren’t looking for – a focused search online doesn’t give you the shop window experience you have inside! Keeping us open is more than just about running a business though. We’ve had so many opportunities over the years to talk to people just passing by.
en: How have those come about?
HG & DL: Once we had ‘Jesus is alive in Streatham’ in one of the shop windows, and this provoked someone to come in and ask about it. It turned out that this man was so distressed that he was about to commit suicide. Today he’s a church leader and says that Manna saved his life. Now that’s humbling, to see God use us in that way. We’ve had Muslims come in and just say ‘Tell me about Jesus’. And we have also had bricks through the windows, as people have been angry at God due to personal circumstances.
en: Talking of shop windows, you seem to have handed over one of them to a group of children.
DL: A local school has just started to do a regular display in our window linked with themes from the church calendar. It’s good to get those local links growing in all directions.
en: You have just renegotiated your rental agreement for the next ten years. How has that affected your future plans for the shop?
HG & DL: We were initially given a 70% rent increase which we had no way of meeting. After negotiations it’s been reduced, but we are still stretched. However, the surveyor who acted for the building’s owner, who isn’t a Christian, wrote something that again showed the hand of God at work: ‘We hope that the exceptional work and service you provide will continue to have a positive impact on the community and extend further’. Well, that’s what we are planning on doing in 2015.
We have converted some upstairs space and are opening the Manna House. The Manna House is designed for those who are seeking a place to belong. We want to use the space to support ex-offenders, some of whom have recently professed faith at Brixton Prison, and those who feel excluded, by providing a meeting place for them in a neutral venue. It’s a big step to walk into a church building, so our plan is to provide an access point into church. We have a prayer space too, and we will be seeing how personnel and needs move on, to see how over time this work changes and grows. Our aim is to change the spiritual climate of Streatham, to be a light at the top of the hill – a literal one in Streatham’s case – for God’s Word to reach people’s hearts and minds.
