Positioned in the heart of Mt Eden Village, Chapter Book & Tea Shop is the kind of place that feels increasingly rare: independent, personal, and built around passion rather than trends.
Part bookshop, part cosy cafe, Chapter has quietly become an institution over the past couple of decades – a sanctuary for readers and tea lovers alike.
The business occupies the original site of Mt Eden’s first dedicated tea shop, established in 1995. When current owner Frances Loo took over in 2005, she initially had a very different vision in mind.
“Back then, I wanted to open a romance bookshop,” Frances tells Verve. “But after looking at a few possible locations, I decided to concentrate on finding something close to my family’s fruit shop business in Mt Eden.”
Fate intervened when she discovered the owners of Tea Time were considering selling, and Frances made an offer.
“I knew straightaway that I was going to keep the tea retail and cafe operations,” she says. “I felt that they were compatible with selling romance books.”
That instinct proved remarkably prescient. Today, Chapter’s shelves hold around 300 teas sourced from respected suppliers including Metropolitan Tea, Tea Total, Harney & Sons, New Zealand-grown OKU and New Zealand-grown Zealong. Loose leaf blends span black, green, white, oolong, herbal and fruit teas, with native ingredients like kawakawa, mānuka leaf and horopito adding a distinctly local flavour.
The cafe itself has become a destination in its own right, serving espresso coffee alongside cakes, savouries and what many regulars would argue are some of Auckland’s best chai and matcha lattes. Over time, the tea side of the business evolved even more dramatically than Frances expected.
“The tea side of the business has grown more than I anticipated,” she says. “This has happened as a result of industry developments – such as the introduction of the luxury tea bag and using native ingredients – as well as our decision to adopt a multi-brand strategy.”
The romance fiction side, however, tells a more turbulent story — one that mirrors the wider upheavals of the publishing industry itself.
Initially, Chapter’s romance sales climbed steadily, peaking around 2012, before the rise of e-books and aggressive online discounting changed the landscape almost overnight.
Rather than retreat, Chapter adapted. More floor space was dedicated to tea and accessories, helping offset the decline in books. Then, unexpectedly, romance fiction roared back during the pandemic years.
“As people spent more time at home, demand for the genre surged because readers sought comforting escapism and happy endings,” Frances explains. “Platforms like TikTok and TV shows such as Bridgerton reinforced this trend.”
… Chapter’s unusual blend of cafe, tea retail and books has created a kind of built-in resilience.
Romance fiction today looks very different to the genre Chapter first stocked in 2005. Contemporary romance and ‘romantasy’ – fantasy-infused romance – now dominate shelves once ruled by historical paperbacks. Readers increasingly seek diverse characters, darker themes and beautifully produced collector editions with sprayed edges.
“Romance books now tend to be spicier, darker and more diverse than when we started,” Frances says.
Still, at its core, the genre continues to shape the identity of the store itself.
“I think our range of romance fiction titles reinforces our identity as a warm, welcoming and bright place.”
That sense of warmth is Chapter’s greatest strength. While many independent retailers struggle to survive shifting consumer habits and rising operating costs, Chapter’s unusual blend of cafe, tea retail and books has created a kind of built-in resilience.
“When one part of the business is quiet, we usually find that another part is performing well,” Frances says.
Equally important is the loyalty of its customer base. Repeat visitors return not only for favourite teas or trusted authors, but also for familiarity.
“We do have a lot of repeat customers in each of our three businesses,” Frances says. “That has allowed us to be resilient over the past two decades.”
Her own involvement in the Mt Eden community has also helped strengthen those roots. Frances has been involved with the local business association since 2010, while Chapter itself continues to favour local suppliers and maintain notably low staff turnover – increasingly rare in hospitality and retail alike.
Looking ahead, Frances doesn’t envision radical reinvention.
“The changes in the business will tend to be incremental,” she says. “Unless I win Powerball, in which case I would add an upstairs level to the store!
“My customers are the primary personal motivation for me. I find it very satisfying to successfully problem-solve for a customer, whether it’s custom-blending a tea similar to one they experienced overseas or helping them complete a collection of books. I definitely get a kick out of seeing our customers walk out of the store with smiles on their faces.”
442 Mt Eden Road, Mt Eden, open Tues-Sun from 10am-4pm
09 623 2319 | 021 635 027
info@chapter.co.nz | chapter.co.nz
