Peter Harrington Limited

BOOKSELLER AND CATALOGUER - ARABIC SPEAKING

BOOKSELLER AND CATALOGUER

Location: Chelsea, London, UK

You must have right to work in the United Kindom

Salary: £27,000 - £35,000 per annum dependent on experience.

Hours: 10.00-18.00, 5 days per week, to include alternate Saturdays.

Benefits: 21 days' annual leave (plus bank holiday), staff parties, employee assistance programme, company pension scheme, season loan ticket, Cyclescheme.

Peter Harrington Limited, an established antiquarian bookseller with a global presence, are seeking to appoint a general cataloguer. The primary aspects of the role will involve researching and cataloguing rare books, for which we will train you in our house style. You’ll be working alongside our senior specialists across several departments, in Literature, History, Travel & Exploration, and Economics & Social Sciences. To be successful in this role you’ll need superb written English and research skills, and meticulous attention to detail.

Responsibilities

• Examine, collate, and enter descriptions of books into our database.
• Research and cataloguing of material.
• Undertake shop duties when required, such as responding to phone and email queries from customers.

As your expertise develops, the role will involve:

• Maintaining specialist knowledge of the global book trade including sources of supply, e.g. auctions, booksellers, third party websites and private individuals.
• Travel overseas, both as part of a team or alone, as the company’s representative.

Essential skills and experience

• Excellent spoken and written English.
• Strong research skills.
• Awareness and knowledge of, or interest in, books and/or printed media.
• Ability to maintain high-quality work while meeting tight deadlines.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• A meticulous, highly organised approach and keen eye for detail and mistakes.

Desirable, but not essential

• Knowledge of a second language (We are particularly interested to hear from applicants with Arabic language skills. For more information or an informal discussion about the role, please contact us).
• A background in science/demonstrable scientific interests
• Knowledge of rare/antiquarian books and the rare book trade.
• Experience in working with Filemaker or databases.
• Experience in luxury retail or customer service.