Two friends are opening a dedicated romance bookshop, Happily Ever After, at Two Moorfields in Liverpool city centre this Saturday, November 14, after transforming a long-empty building.
Lana Parker, 35, from Bootle, and Becks O'Driscoll, 42, from Prenton, have spent months renovating the premises on the corner of Dale Street, close to Moorfields railway station. The building holds personal memories for both women: Lana remembers it as a bank, while Becks once visited to take her driving theory test.
Extensive Renovation Work
The scale of the work was considerable. On a previous visit, the building was in disrepair, with damaged flooring, crumbling walls, exposed electrical wiring, and evidence of mice among the issues that needed tackling. The pair were undeterred by the condition.
Speaking to the ECHO inside the now unrecognisable site, they said: “I honestly don't think we've had a moment to take in what we've achieved. The transformation has been unreal. We want a really chilled vibe, somewhere that feels welcoming to everyone. We're not having wi-fi initially because we want people to put their phones away, read and talk to each other.”
Community Excitement
The pair have already seen strong interest from the public ahead of the official opening. They added: “We've put our blood, sweat and tears into this. We've already had so many people trying to come in, and we've had to tell them we're not open until Saturday. Everyone's been peering through the windows, especially when we've had all the lights on. People seem really excited to see what we've done.”
Reflecting on the effort involved, they said: "It's absolutely been worth it. It's been a lot more work than we probably anticipated, but I think that makes it even more special. We've done so much of it ourselves, and now we can finally sit back and think, 'My God, we've actually done this'. We haven't just walked away and come back to find something that's been done for us. We've put so much of ourselves into this. Every single second has been worth it."
A Venue for More Than Books
Becks took a break from her career as a business analyst to pursue the project. She said: “I’m at the point in my life where if I don’t do it now, I won’t do it at all. Lana is the creative one with all the ideas, and I’m the one who makes the ideas happen, so we work really well together in that space. Our WhatsApps are constantly going off, saying ‘we’ll do this, and then we’ll have to do that’. It’s a really exciting time - we’re so excited one minute, and nervous the next.”
For Lana, the size of Two Moorfields was one of its biggest attractions. She regularly hosts events and wants Happily Ever After to offer a space where people can meet, socialise and stay a while. She said: “It’s going to be much more than just a bookshop; we want people to come for food, for drinks, for chats, for parties. Even if people aren’t readers, we want people to come in, love the vibe and the girls who work here and want to come back because of that.”
The building was not an obvious choice for Lana at first. After two other properties fell through, she decided it was worth viewing Two Moorfields, despite describing it as “terrifying”. Stepping inside changed her mind. She said she was “beaming like a Cheshire cat” when she looked out through the huge windows. She added: “I just knew. This was it. I couldn't wait to get Becks down to see it, and she fell in love with it straight away too. Honestly, it's the windows. They're absolutely gorgeous. The location is perfect too, right in the heart of Liverpool city centre.”
