Librairie Furet du Nord

In Lille, Place Charles de Gaulle, there is a concept called Le Furet du Nord. With an impressive 6,000 m2 of surface area spread across seven floors, books, multimedia, and office supplies are on display.

The largest bookstore in Europe draws thousands of customers each day looking for books or audiobooks.

Trace its roots:

The French Nord department has a chain of bookstores called Furet du Nord. Its beginnings can be traced back to 1936, when a bookstore was established inside a fur shop on Rue de la Vieille-Comédie in Lille.

It has kept the name that refers to a custom in the area: using ferrets to go rabbit hunting.

The flagship store is now situated on the Grand Place in Lille. From 1992 to 1999, it held the title of biggest bookstore in the world. It was founded in 1959. It continues to rank among the biggest bookstores in France.

Learn about its evolutuon:

The shop has expanded over time, going from 200 m2 to 8,000 m2. Furet du Nord moved to the location of the Cinema Le Bellevue in 1976 and expanded to 4,500 m2, then to 8,000 m2 in 1991 in place of the Hotel Strasbourg. The French network of Virgin Megastores was acquired by Lagardère (formerly Hachette Distribution Services) in the summer of 2001, making it the second-largest French group with a focus on the distribution of cultural goods (ahead of the French group Pinault Printemps Redoute).

Admire the technological advances installed in it:

Reaching an illuminance of more than 800 lux while illuminating an atrium from a height of 18 metres! Impossible? The finished product is on display in the Lille location of the bookshop Le Furet du Nord.

Admire architectural beauty:

The façade was altered in 1969 to return it to its original 18th-century design by removing 19th-century additions. The painting La Procession de Lille en 1789 by François Watteau served as inspiration for the façade.