Volunteers Help Iconic Turkish Bookshop Move

Shelf Awareness

When Robinson Crusoe, the iconic English-language bookstore in Istanbul's Beyoğlu district, was "forced to move from its well-known location on the central İstiklal Avenue, after struggling to pay its rent in an increasingly tough area for small businesses," volunteers showed up to pass the store's inventory hand-to-hand down the street to its new location, Hürriyet Daily News reported.

In a statement, Robinson Crusoe noted: "As part of İstiklal Avenue's multicultural landscape, which is facing the increasing threat of uniformization, [we are moving] in order to resist without going too far." Hürriyet Daily News wrote that "many Istanbul bookstores are on the brink of disappearing due to rising rental costs, and many have denounced the lack of municipality assistance for small shops."