I will miss the market life - owner of Derek's Books on pending retirement after 48 years and what's next
He announced the news earlier this month leaving many of his customers gutted.
I will miss the market life, because I have known nothing else are the fond words of Derek Walsh of Derek’s Books, who will be retiring in less than two weeks.
After 48 years running his book stall in markets across Lancashire, the beloved stall holder is preparing to pack up his books and retire.
He announced the news earlier this month leaving many of his customers gutted but wishing him well on his well deserved retirement journey.
His last day of trading on Chorley Market will be Tuesday, September 8, and his final market day will be on Thursday, September 10, in Garstang.
But does he plan on reading any of those books - or he he other ideas for his well deserved retirement?
Derek said: “I've been trading on Chorley Market for the last 48 years, and unfortunately, in a fortnight, I'm retiring on September the 8th.
“I've done several markets over the years, throughout the Northwest, Ormskirk, Earlestown, Preston, Blackburn, and many others, numerous, I can't remember these days.
“I will miss the market life, because I have known nothing else.
“My dad and my elder brother used to do the markets and as a child, they used to live for Saturdays to go to the market.
“To suddenly finish it's gonna be hard work at first, but the 3.30am alarm call in the morning and being on the market at 5 o'clock in the morning, I will not miss, and I will not miss the winter mornings, stood in the wind and the rain. No!”
Has he a favourite book?
“My favourite book, which I've gone back to many a time, is Lord of the Rings. I've read on three separate occasions. The full three volumes - and the films were very good.
“I enjoyed that, but now I read more detective stories these days, I'm currently going through the LJ Ross series.
“My favourite book as a child - I can't say because, as a child, I never read. I was terrible! I had an unlimited supply of comics. Superman, Batman, anything like that, was my go to. But the one thing I could do, they used to do a series called The Classic Comics, and it was all the classics of, like, Jules Verne, or Around the World in 80 Days, which were all done in a comic version. So I could answer questions at school on all the classic books, which I never read!”
What is the most expensive book he has ever sold?
“The most expensive book I ever sold was a second hand paperback that came in, and it was called the Cola Cowboys. I didn't end up selling it on the stall, I put it online and I think I just got about short of £100 for it.
“It was a book about when the truckers used to do long haulage, all the way to Iran. It was all about their exploits of driving through, God knows, how many countries to get to Iran, with these strange and weird and wonderful loads some of them took.”
Any retirement plans?
“I've never had a chance, really, to sit down and properly read, so I'm gonna make amends on that when I retire.
“The books I sell are mainly fiction. I very rarely do any non-fiction, maybe the odd classic biography or something like that, but the biggest fiction seller we have over the years has probably been James Patterson.
“My business model has been doing part exchange over the years, people bringing the books in to put towards whatever they want to read next, which then supplies us with books.
“People think, oh, a bookstore, I can get books from anywhere, but it's getting the right books that you need that people want to buy. That's the key thing of the stall, is to get the right stock coming in.”
He added: “It's gonna be an absolute wrench to stop coming to the markets, but the weather and the hours have got to me at last. But I will miss all my customers, because they're not just customers, they're a family and they've been very much appreciated over the years.”