Good Press, Glasgow. The only bookstore in the UK with an open submission policy

«I might appreciate 10% of our stock, but I respect 100% of it. After it has been made, a book, zine or record deserves visibility». In conversation with co-founder Matthew Walkerdine

Good Press volunteer-run bookstore in Glasgow

Located in Glasgow city center at 32 St Andrew’s St., Good Press is a volunteer-run bookstore dedicated to the promotion, production, and sale of independent and self-published printed matter. Founded in 2011 by Matthew Walkerdine, with a background in product and furniture design, and Jessica Higgins, the store provides a physical space where artists, designers, and creatives can freely present their printed work.

“In 2011, there was only one bookstore in Glasgow. There were no spaces promoting book-making. We wanted to fill that gap and show people it’s possible to create books and sell them,” Walkerdine explains. Before opening Good Press, Walkerdine had self-published skateboarding zines as a teenager and later visual arts books through Museums Press, an independent publisher he ran with Higgins in Manchester. The name “Good Press” originated from a collaboration with the comic shop “Good Grief!” and the project launched in Glasgow the same year.

The store began as a temporary project inside Mono, a café-restaurant with a record shop at 12 Kings Court. Walkerdine designed promotional materials in exchange for using an unused space for three months. “The experiment worked well. People came for coffee and stopped to see our books and participate in events. We stayed there for three years.” In 2014, Good Press moved to 5 St Margaret’s Place for five years before relocating to its current, larger space to accommodate a gifted risograph printer. The store is now in a central, accessible area surrounded by galleries and creative enterprises.

The bookstore layout includes photography books on the left, visual arts and writing in the middle, and poetry and music on the right. Industrial furniture, bright blue metal shelves, pink floors, boxes for magazines and zines, plants, and paintings create a layered, inviting atmosphere.

Publications at Good Press

Good Press operates on an open submission policy, the only bookstore in the UK to do so. Anyone with a self-published book can submit it for sale. The store receives about thirty submissions per month from Europe, the US, Russia, Japan, and recently the Emirates. “We don’t curate because curating imposes our views. We accept anything not harmful or discriminatory,” Walkerdine says. The store avoids magazines with ads and mainstream publications.

Visitors can find thousands of titles on art, design, architecture, cinema, illustration, music, photography, writing, zines, records, and apparel. All publications are treated equally and featured on social media. Popular stock includes visual arts, text-based printed matter, design, and music. Recent notable additions include Free Jazz Communism (Rab-Rab Press), Faux Pas (Amy Sillman, After 8 Books), Close River (Alexa Winik), Imperative Utopia (Saskia McCracken), Knotted (Emily Uduwana), and Room to Swing a Cat (Ruthie Kennedy).

Non-profit structure

Good Press operates as a non-profit, independent of grants or public funding, relying on sales. 65% of revenue goes to the artist or maker, and 35% supports the space, rent, and maintenance. Volunteers include Walkerdine, Higgins, Manuel Rodriguez Fernandez, and painter Nick Lynch. The team emphasizes a non-hierarchical environment, fostering a social space free from racism, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, ableism, and classism.

Good Press also supports external causes through the sale of artist-designed bookmarks, funding initiatives such as Refuweegee, Positive Action in Housing, Maryhill Integration Network, and disaster relief projects. The store has supported Black Lives Matter, refugee aid, Trussell Trust Foodbanks, SWARM, Women’s Aid, and SAY Women & Unity Centre Glasgow.

Sunday’s Print Service & Open Access Studio

Good Press shares its space with Sunday’s Print Service & Open Access Studio, specializing in risograph and laser printing. The studio offers book, poster, flyer, and card production, along with binding options including saddle stitch, coil, paperback, hot foil, and DIY thermography. The print room serves both commercial clients and community members, providing affordable, accessible printing facilities. Good Press and Sunday’s Print Service are merging into a workers’ cooperative.

The store hosts book launches, performances, screenings, and reading groups, all on an open submission basis. It shares the building with Lunchtime Gallery, a non-profit promoting emerging artists, where 100% of sales go directly to the artists. Current exhibitions include Glasgow-based artist Jessie Whiteley, with works available at the bookstore.

“Next October, we’ll celebrate our 10th anniversary with a gathering dedicated to books,” Walkerdine concludes.

Good Press, Glasgow
32 St Andrew’s St, Glasgow G1 5PD, United Kingdom
Good Press is a volunteer-run bookstore and art space specializing in self and independently produced publications and projects.