Smith's Bookshop

Tucked away in the elegant corridors of The Tannery, you’ll find one of Christchurch’s oldest bookshops, Smith's Bookshop. The history of Smith’s dates back to 1894, but the store first began selling secondhand books in 1966. Originally residing in a historic, three-story building on Manchester Street, the shop suffered significant damage from the 2011 earthquakes and was demolished prior to their reopening in Woolston.

Smith's Bookshop is still a buyer and seller of new and secondhand books, specialising in New Zealand nonfiction titles. They also deal in rare and antiquarian books and ephemera.  With almost 20,000 books catalogued the business also has a significant online trade, fulfilling orders from within New Zealand and overseas.

The shop at The Tannery is roughly split between new and secondhand books and includes an extensive section of children's books. Specialising in genres like New Zealand regional history, natural history, Tangata Whenua and the arts, the friendly staff are always happy to help find titles or field inquiries about long-gone books.

In addition, Smith's publishes out-of-print New Zealand books through its wholly-owned subsidiary, The Cadsonbury Press. Currently, there are 128 Cadsonbury books available. Popular titles include "Tikao Talks", "Kaikoura" and "John Jones of Otago." 

The interior of Smith’s invites you to happily linger amongst the cosy wall-to-wall shelving, quirky artwork and thoughtful displays. A popular feature for those familiar with the Manchester Street building is a photographic montage showing the shop's past history. One thing’s clear: this proudly independent bookshop is not to be missed.