Image caption, The Haunted Bookshop has been running for two years
ByMarcus Boothe, Bristol and Sonia Mumtaz, Bristol- Published45 minutes ago
An independent bookshop which specialises in horror, fantasy, folklore and the occult is trying to raise £20,000 to save it from closing.
The Haunted Bookshop opened in Bristol two years ago for "anyone who has ever felt a little different".
Owner, Monika Killer, said ongoing cost-of-living pressures and a recent drop in footfall due to the heatwave have meant that the business has fallen behind on essential bills and is now "impossible to manage alone".
Killer has started a crowd fundraiser, which has so far seen more than 450 supporters pledge over £7,500 to save the shop.
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Killer said the bookshop also provides a support network for a wide range of city artists and small businesses, a community that has "always been at the heart of everything we do".
"We've created a place where people who often feel like they don't belong can find friendship, acceptance, and a sense of home," she said.
Leigh-Ann Charlotte works at the bookshop as a tarot reader, but was originally a loyal customer.
She said it is a great space for anyone who likes anything different, like witchcraft.
Image caption, A crowd fundraiser has so far raised over £7,500 towards rescuing the shop
Customer Sarina Maloy said the space gives people a chance to connect, and "it would be a severe loss if the shop shuts down".
Another regular at the shop, Mia Gailey, said it was a second home for people who do not fit in elsewhere.
"If it wasn't for this place, I wouldn't have had some of the greatest friendships and experiences I've ever had," she said.
"Watching these connections form has been the greatest privilege of running this shop, and I want nothing more than to see this community continue to grow and thrive," Killer added.
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