OPENING IN THE HISTORIC VILLAGE SAINT PAUL
BEYOND THE SHOPFRONT
The Lamp-Post begins with a street-facing emporium of curated books, candles, writing goods, curious objects, and good advice. Follow that good advice, because just across a quiet courtyard is the grand bookshop and upstairs private library. It all unfolds like chapters of the same story. Or at least like one of those anthologies from the bookshelf of a very eccentric uncle who won the war but refuses to discuss it.
The bookshop’s catalogue centers on classics of literature and the history of ideas, inviting readers to find a familiar favourite, follow an unexpected trail, or finally encounter one of those authors you simply must read before you die. In the private library, members can read, work, gather for a drink, dialogue and debate – and fight and forgive each other in an instant. Historical lectures and literary events will make conversation part of the life of the place.
THE STORY
The Lamp-Post grew from a simple wish: “What kind of bookshop do we wish existed in Paris?”
The answer was near-unanimous: “A world within a world! The kind of bookshop that exists in the best memories of a past you’ve never lived!” A place where you can still collapse into an armchair, where recommendations turn into conversations, and visits last much longer than planned. The English-language catalogue will draw on classic literature and the history of ideas, bringing enduring and indispensable works into conversation with readers today.
Books are only part of the experience. The emporium’s objects and sunken treasures, the quiet of the private library, and an eccentric but reliable programme of historical lectures and gatherings are designed to give readers of English books a new secret home in Paris.
THE TEAM
Destiny Ellis | Co-Founder & Creative Director
Destiny leads operations, design, product development, and cultural programming. Drawing on two decades in retail, hospitality, and merchandising, she has a passion for creating beautiful, one-of-a-kind spaces with a life of their own. She is bringing that vision to the emporium, bookshop, and library: three connected spaces where readers, wanderers, and the casually inquisitive may find common ground.
Dr. Jameson Workman | Co-Founder & Literary Director
Jameson leads the book catalogue and literary programme. A published medievalist and Chaucer scholar with a doctorate and master’s in literature from the University of Oxford and a BA in Philosophy from The American University of Paris, Jameson brings an expert’s knowledge and a reader’s curiosity to literary classics and the history of ideas.
Tommy Marcoon | Literary Associate
In his final semester as a double-major in creative writing and French studies at The American University of Paris, Tommy works closely with Jameson to develop the collections and literary programme, bringing his own perspective as a young writer, scholar, and all-around deep-thinker.
Sara Linard | Creative Associate
A French graduate in Applied Foreign Languages, Sara studied English and Spanish through business, translation, and cultural studies. She helps shape the emporium’s products and displays, bringing a sense of place to its collection of gifts and curious objects. Working across product development, visual presentation, and sales, she connects the things on the shelves with the people who discover them.