Ink@84 Books& Drink

Ink@84 opened at 84 Highbury Park just before Christmas 2015, founded by artist Tessa Shaw and writer Betsy Tobin, who judged that Highbury, then without an independent bookshop, had the neighbourhood feel to support one. The shop pairs curated fiction, children's books and non-fiction with a small bar serving wine and coffee, encouraging browsing to run into conversation over a drink. Shaw and Tobin run book clubs and author events from the shop floor alongside day-to-day bookselling, building a programme that draws regulars back through the week. The premises remain the pair's only shop, trading as a single independent bookshop on Highbury Park rather than as part of any wider chain or group.