23.47°C Many people in Colchester know Jo Coldwell through Red Lion Books. Others know her through Appetite Book Club, author events, yoga classes, or community projects that stretch back more than two decades.
I first properly got to know Jo during the days of Colchester Free Festival, when she and Melissa Porter brought Kidstival to the event. Before then, and continuing since, her involvement in the city’s cultural life has evolved through book clubs, community initiatives and, more recently, her role as manager of Red Lion Books.
We meet at the bookshop on Colchester High Street. Customers come and go during our conversation. Staff move between shelves, deliveries and enquiries. It feels like a fitting setting for somebody whose life revolves around connecting people with things they might enjoy.
From Free Festival to Appetite Book Club
Looking back at the days of Free Festival and Kidstival, I ask Jo what has changed most about Colchester’s cultural scene.
“If anything, I think it has solidified and grown,” she says.
“What hasn’t changed in Colchester is the moaning.”
She laughs.
“Sometimes I embrace that moaning because I think a bit of moaning, a bit of whinging, maybe that’s what inspires us all to keep going and keep getting better.
“I never see a whinge as a bad thing. I see it as, right, what can we do more of and do better?”
It’s a very Colchester answer.
A few minutes later, the Free Festival comes up again.
“It wasn’t a business, and it wasn’t a charity.”
That made it surprisingly difficult to explain at times.
When we asked people to get involved, there was no commercial return and no charitable cause attached.
“We were doing it for the people.”
Looking back, she says those years taught her a lot about the difference between business, charity and community.
Many people also know Jo through the Appetite Book Club.
Appetite Book Club began in 2007 and has grown into one of the biggest and longest-running book groups in the area.
What started as a single monthly gathering now takes place three times a month across Colchester, with groups meeting at Church Street Tavern, the Officers’ Club and the Mercury Theatre.
I ask what has kept people coming back.
“It’s the people. It’s not the books.”
The answer arrives instantly.
“It’s something that happens with that particular group of people.”
The original group became so popular that Jo had to turn people away.
“I hate turning away people, old or new.”
Rather than limit numbers, she created more groups.
One member has been attending since 2007.
“She’s only really missed one meeting.”
Why?
“She was in labour.”
Jo laughs.
Stories like that help explain why Appetite Book Club has lasted nearly two decades. The books may bring people through the door, but the friendships are what keep many of them coming back.
Bringing People Together
I ask why so much of her life seems to revolve around bringing people together.
The answer takes her back to childhood.
Both of her parents were only children and constantly reminded her how lucky she was to have a sibling.
Growing up without a large extended family, she thinks she was always drawn towards creating those wider connections elsewhere.
“I’ve always wanted to find those connections.”
Looking back, it isn’t difficult to see that instinct running through much of what she does.
A long time ago, theatre director Neil D’Arcy Jones described Jo to me as one of the busiest people in Colchester.
It is difficult to disagree.
“I’ve got lots of tabs open all the time.”
The description raises a smile because anybody who knows Jo will immediately recognise it.
Long before joining Red Lion Books in 2017, she worked in music promotions and for independent record labels.
“When you work for an indie, you care more and work to thrive every day,” she says.
Although the industries are very different, there are similarities. Small teams. Limited resources. The need to keep moving forward.
Away from books, yoga has become another important part of her life.
I ask what it brings her.
She talks warmly about her teacher, Heidi Marie Pascual and describes yoga as one of the few times she properly slows down.
“When I’m lying on a mat in a class, it’s the only time when I truly sit still.”
She never intended to become a yoga teacher herself.
“I didn’t do it to teach.”
Jo’s husband Phil appears several times during our conversation.
While Jo is often the public face people know, she is quick to acknowledge the support behind the scenes.
“He cooks, cleans, washes and irons. Literally does everything.”
Then comes the punchline.
“He doesn’t really like yoga, and he doesn’t really love books. But it turns out he really likes me.”
The laugh that follows suggests she’s said that before.
More Than a Bookshop
We return to Red Lion Books.
The shop has been part of Colchester High Street since 1978 and today hosts author events, signings, writing groups, book clubs and regular community events alongside its day-to-day bookselling.
I ask how important it is for independent businesses to create opportunities for people to connect.
“I cannot imagine opening your door and just waiting for somebody to walk in.”
“It just isn’t how it happens now.”
For Jo, events have become an essential part of modern bookselling.
She believes people who choose bookselling are often interested in community in the first place.
“The kind of person who wants to work in a bookshop has got this love of community and books and people.”
At one point, she recalls organising Tea and Sympathy parties and inviting complete strangers to spend time together.
“We had no discrimination on age or ‘type’.”
“You’re my person. You’re a human.”
A few moments later, she sums up the approach more simply.
“All humans are welcome.”
It is probably as good a description of Red Lion Books as any mission statement could provide.
One idea she is currently considering is a buddy system for some of the shop’s regular customers.
Some people visit so frequently that staff notice when they are missing.
“If I don’t see you, have you got a daughter or son I can contact?”
The idea is still taking shape, but it says something about the role the shop plays in many people’s lives.
We spoke about Peter and Sarah Donaldson. The couple founded the business in 1978.
I ask why she thinks Red Lion Books continues to thrive nearly fifty years later.
Part of the answer, she believes, is Peter and Sarah themselves.
“They’ve just been quietly doing it in the most beautiful way.”
“They are so understated.”
She talks about the systems they put in place, their willingness to adapt and the hard work required to keep an independent bookshop moving forward.
At one point, she becomes visibly emotional.
“I truly love Peter and Sarah.”
It’s one of the few moments in the conversation where she pauses before continuing.
A City of Readers
I ask whether Colchester has a stronger reading culture than people may realise.
“We know this is a city of readers.”
Jo points to Appetite Book Club, the number of other reading groups across the city, author events and the continued success of the Essex Book Festival.
What has struck her most over the years is the loyalty of readers.
Several authors have told her that Red Lion Books has developed a reputation as one of the friendliest stops on the circuit.
“We are very proud of that.”
Publicists will often send authors to London, Cambridge or Norwich. Colchester can sometimes be overlooked.
When writers do stop here, Jo believes audiences respond.
“We are very loyal.”
An author who takes the time to visit Colchester often finds readers returning for future books and future events.
I ask what makes Colchester special.
“Location is brilliant.”
She talks about being close to London and close to the coast but quickly moves on to the city itself.
Colchester Arts Centre is one of the first places she mentions.
“I thought the Arts Centre was amazing. To this day, I think it’s amazing.”
She remembers travelling to Colchester long before she lived here because of the venue.
Colchester Zoo comes up too.
So does Castle Park.
“Our park is stunning.”
She talks about the layout of the city, its independent businesses and the people behind them. Jo compares parts of Colchester to a mini Brighton.
What comes through most strongly is her belief that the city sometimes underestimates itself.
Visitors often see things that residents take for granted.
Looking Ahead
The conversation eventually moves on to the future of independent businesses.
The Booksellers Association recently highlighted concerns about rising business rates and the pressures facing independent bookshops.
Jo doesn’t avoid the reality of that.
“The only solution is use it or lose it.”
She isn’t talking only about bookshops.
The point applies equally to pubs, cafés, music venues and independent retailers.
“If you don’t walk into our shop, we won’t be here.”
There is no assumption that being established guarantees survival.
“You are only as good as your last album.”
People often say they value independent businesses. Those businesses only survive when people use them.
I ask what she is most proud of when she looks at what Red Lion Books has become.
“The staff. Definitely.”
The answer comes immediately.
After spending time with Jo, it isn’t a surprising response.
Throughout our conversation, she talks about colleagues, readers, customers, authors and friends far more than she talks about herself.
I ask what success looks like over the next five years.
“Being here.”
Before we finish, I ask one final question.
Looking back, what has Colchester given her in return?
“So many friendships.”
She pauses.
“Such kindness, honestly, such beautiful people.”
