Independent map shop celebrates 50th anniversary

An independent shop renowned for its vast collection of maps and guides has celebrated its 50th anniversary.

Founded in 1975 in Upton-upon-Severn, Worcestershire, The Map Shop began as a hobby and has since grown into one of the UK's largest map retailers, boasting an inventory of more than 55,000 titles.

Owner Tony Atkinson, a lifelong map enthusiast and former land surveyor, still runs the store and despite the rise of mobile navigation, he remains confident in the enduring value of traditional maps.

"Everybody still needs maps," he told BBC Hereford and Worcester. "If you've got GPS and the battery runs down, you'll wish you had a map."

The shop's shelves also stock maps of countries around the world.

For Mr Atkinson, the passion began at the age of four, when his father who was serving in the RAF, returned home and unfolded a map of Germany.

"My favourite map is the first one I ever saw," he recalled. "At four years old I thought, how can you get all this on one sheet of paper? I was hooked from that day on."

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