Book Stores
Small independent bookshop in the middle of Steveston Village selling new and used titles, with a genuine specialty in British Columbia history, local maritime subjects and regional writing. Worth a browse if you are researching the fishing village's past.
BC history, maritime subjects and regional writing are what this shop is genuinely good at, and the specialty is the right one for where it stands. Steveston Book Store sits in the middle of the village selling new and used titles side by side, a combination that makes browsing worth doing in a way no algorithm replicates. You find the thing you were not looking for.
Steveston was a cannery town long before it was a destination, with a fishing fleet, a Japanese Canadian community that was forcibly removed in 1942, and a working waterfront that still lands boats today. The published record of all that is scattered across small-press local history, out-of-print titles and regional writing that a chain would never bother stocking. If you are researching the village's past, or you have just come out of the Gulf of Georgia Cannery wanting to know more, a shelf of BC history two blocks away is exactly the right next step.
Independent bookshops have thinned out badly across Metro Vancouver, and the survivors tend to manage it by being genuinely good at something specific rather than by carrying everything. Allow more time than you think for a shop this size, because the good ones are dense rather than large and the interesting stock is rarely at eye level. Moncton Street is walkable end to end, the boardwalk is a couple of minutes south, and a browse fits neatly into an afternoon in the village. Outside the summer season the whole street is quieter, which is when a bookshop like this is at its best.
In the Steveston neighbourhood of Richmond.
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Other book stores and nearby businesses in the Richmond directory.
Steveston bookshop and cafe in one room, stocking mostly secondhand titles with some new releases. You can trade in your own books for store credit, and the espresso bar means people settle in rather than browse and leave. Separate kids' and adult sections.
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Chinese-language bookshop on the upper level of Aberdeen Centre, carrying traditional-character titles alongside stationery and magazines. One of the few places in Metro Vancouver to browse a serious Chinese book selection in person.
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Family-run Steveston bike shop trading since 2007. Sells Giant, Liv and Marin bikes, rents hybrids, commuters and e-bikes for the dyke trails, and does certified mechanical work. They also collect and drop off bikes for service around Richmond.
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Maternity and children's boutique that has been on Moncton Street since 2011. Carries pregnancy and nursing clothing, baby and kids' wear, footwear and accessories, and is one of the few dedicated maternity shops left anywhere in Richmond.
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A small florist counter operating inside a larger balloon and party shop on First Avenue in Steveston. Useful for a last-minute bouquet or a flowers-plus-balloons combination for a birthday, though it keeps short afternoon hours.
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A small wood-fired pizza shop that opened in Steveston in late 2023. Thin, blistered Neapolitan-style pies made to order plus a short list of sides. Mostly a takeout counter with limited seating, so call ahead on busy village evenings.
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From the blog
Longer reads from the editor, with the places worth a detour linked inside them.
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