Press Release: Miscellaneous Announcements
Watkins Books Saved By Last-Minute Purchase
Posted at 1:35PM Friday 12 Mar 2010
Acting on behalf of the insolvency practitioners Harris Lipman LLP, Edward Symmons LLP can announce today that contracts have been exchanged on the sale of one of London's most famous independent bookshops - Watkins Books - just two weeks before the business was to be liquidated. American entrepreneur, Etan Ilfeld is purchasing the business in its entirety for an undisclosed sum. Dating back more than 100 years, Watkins Books has become a familiar shop front in the heart of the West End, located on Cecil Court, a Victorian thoroughfare near Leicester Square. Over the decades, the shop developed an international reputation for its specialist esoteric literary titles which were sourced from across the globe, while in recent years the business diversified with the addition of artefacts to its stock, including crystals, jewellery and statues. Steve Mason of Edward Symmons comments: "Having been appointed by Harris Lipman only two weeks ago, we are delighted to have secured a buyer for Watkins Books. We are even more pleased to learn of Mr Ilfeld's plans to get the shop back up and running in its existing form." Etan Ilfeld is represented by Nick Willets at RLS, and is keen to preserve Cecil Court's heritage. Ilfeld said: "It's not everyday that you have the opportunity to save a century old business. I don't believe that spirituality in London is dead and will do my best to ensure that Watkins Books will be sustainable and survive the 21st century."
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