At a press conference in Howald on Monday morning Caroline Muehlfenzl, the owner of the English language book store Chapter1, proudly unveiled her new creation, The Book Loft.

As Caroline explained, this “second chapter” in the story is about space. Space which is at a premium in the Chapter1 shop in Merl, and space which will be utilised to its maximum potential in The Book Loft not simply as a place to buy English language books, which of course one can, but also to host a wide variety of cultural exchanges from the ever popular but increasingly cramped children’s Saturday Book Readings through to a variety of art, literature and wellbeing workshops.

The Book Loft is a mezzanine space above the recently opened Irish shop Éirelux Supplies at 40 Rue des Bruyères in Howald. Its 140m2 has been split into child and adult zones by interior designer Sonya Heffernan, who has made imaginative use of both areas to create two distinct but harmonious zones, each housing several intuitively separate functional areas.

Chapter1 manager, Jane Mottet, explained the decision-making process behind the choice of Howald, citing the development of the Ban de Gasperich and the new institutional offices as being two key reasons, as well as the enormous potential of the space, and the way that the expanding ÉireLux facilities on the ground floor, which include not only the shop but also the imminent all-day bar and restaurant, will provide additional exciting possibilities.

This theme was expanded upon by Chapter1 Marketing and Communication Manager, Daniela Fusillo, who talked enthusiastically about the wide range of events and services which The Book Loft would allow Chapter1 to develop, including childrens’ parties and themed events, musical and cultural evenings and other ways in which to reach out to an even wider audience than Chapter1 currently enjoys.

Prior to officially opening its doors on Friday 1 July 2016 there will be a special pre-opening event on Thursday 30 June 2016. This event will require pre-booking with places allocated on a first come, first served, basis. For more information please contact Daniela Fusillo at daniela@chapter1.lu

Photos by John Chalmers (Top L-R: The Launch Team Daniela Fusillo, Jane Mottet, Caroline Muehlfenzl, Sonya Heffernan. Middle: Sonya Heffernan. Bottom: Caroline Muehlfenzl)