Hatchards is London’s oldest bookshop, having been established in 1797 by John Hatchard, a young bookseller who had been plying his trade in the ‘literary coffee houses’ of London since his adolescence. Hatchards has been a landmark on one of the finest and most famous streets in the world, Piccadilly, since Georgian times, occupying the current building, number 187, for over two centuries. 

Its customers have been the literary, political, artistic and social lions of their day and, since its inception, a link has been forged between the fine booksellers of Hatchards and the royal households of Britain and europe, as demonstrated by the three royal warrants it currently holds. Eight generations of customers and booksellers have come and gone since the shop first opened its doors.

Many things have changed but the essence of the place remains the same and is unchangeable. Hatchards is a unique British institution.