What is it about books that makes us hold on to them? In this article, meet Isabella Rose Davey, founder of Conch Books and former COO of Copenhagen Fashion Week. Her relationship with books is intimate and social in equal measure: a paper trail of a life, a way into conversations she wouldn’t otherwise have, and a reason to bring strangers together in a room.
Image of Isabella Rose Davey
Photo by Tine Bek
The thing about collecting, gathering and sharing books is…?
..that it feels like you end up with a paper trail of your own little, wild and precious life.
How does collecting books differ from collecting art, design or furniture?
Sadly I am weighed down by my reality in that I only have a set amount of square metres in our apartment, or a finite amount of money in my account, so books can often build up quicker than art, design or furniture for me. Books can also become voracious addictions: leaving a bookshop with only one book can often feel like an impossible task. You know the feeling when you are so hungry and you purchase more than you could ever possibly eat in the supermarket? The same can be said for books. I wish I didn’t need to sleep or work sometimes, as I would happily trade that time in to be locked between pages.
How does living with books differ from living with art, design or furniture?
There is something comforting about having your books near: to cross reference, to read once again, to mull over and dream about. In equal measure, there is no greater feeling than matching a friend to a book you have in your possession and passing its magic on.
Image of books stacked in Isabella Rose Davey’s home
Photo by Tine Bek
Image of Isabella Rose Davey's bookshelf
Photo by Tine Bek
What does a book give you that a chair or a canvas doesn’t?
Books can pull you into a new dimension, and envelop your thoughts. A canvas too can mesmerise, and a chair or another piece of design can help transport your mind, but they are incomparable to the immense power of a book. Neither is superior, but is there anything more wonderful in life than being able to take your mind away, anywhere you are with the simple support of a paperback?
Books build visions, fantasies, hellscapes, alternative tomorrows: for me they help me think. I find myself often daydreaming about ideas or projects while I am reading, which probably explains why I might not run through books, but I will think up ideas that make my eyes ignite when I have paper between my hands.
Is there a ritual around books, such as how you shop, where you read or how you store them?
I am a creature of habit, like most people, and have my favourite bookshops that I find myself circulating regularly, hold my habits around when I like to read (morning, in bed, with a coffee and then in the evening) and keep my books across the two bookshelves we have.
Whenever I travel, I will visit a local bookstore and purchase a book, sourcing local authors. I am sure I am not alone in saying that I have gone on holiday with a number of books, only to return with double the number after discovering local literary purveyors. Is there anything as satisfying as purchasing a book on a trip abroad?
Does a shelf of books say more about a person than a wardrobe does?
I think they say different things about ourselves. I have had the pleasure of working with some truly fantastic fashion brands over the years, and falling into their universes has been such a joy to discover. What has shaped those visions, more often than not, however, is a shelf of books. All roads lead to the printed page!
Your book concept Conch Books is built around people coming together. When did you first notice that books could do that?
I can be quite a private person, but I have found I reveal more about myself through the discussion of books than through any other topic. Books can craft the most intimate of conversations without us even realising, and I wanted to celebrate and further that.
Is there a moment at one of your gatherings that, for you, captures why this works?
So many moments! Strangers turning up and sharing their points of view. Visiting incredible cultural institutions and leaving with new perspectives. Gathering people to talk about an experience they have shared. Conch Books was created to create moments to cluster people together through books and printed matter: how to build those moments is where the excitement lies, and the imagination can run wild through.
What does your community want from a book that digital culture can’t give them?
People crave in person experiences: we all just want to connect and converse and essentially be present in the moment. It seems so simple and yet it feels like the hardest thing for us all to achieve in this day and age. Books remind us to take joy seriously, and to find time to pause, immerse and reflect.
Which book would you hand to a stranger and why?
Such a hard question! Right now I have Strangeland by Tracey Emin next on my list (our gift to our guests that came on our private tour of Tracey Emin at Louisiana Museum with us) so I would gift that book, and suggest we regroup a month later and make a book club out of it.
Image of Elio with Conch Books poster
Photo by Tine Bek
Image of Conch Books gathering to discuss Polly Barton’s ‘What Am I, A Deer?’ With Fitzcarraldo Editions at Simone Book Services
Photo by Tuiaara Kirova
Isabella Rose Davey is the founder of Conch Books and consulting agency Projects and Culture. Prior to this, she was COO at Copenhagen Fashion Week, having worked in the fashion industry for over twelve years.
Isabella founded Conch Books in order to celebrate the cultural connectivity of books and printed matter, and since launching in the spring of 2026 she has since collaborated with the likes of Nike, Vince, Louisiana Museum, Ark Journal, Copenhagen Contemporary, Anne Sofie Madsen and Ferm Living amongst others, and has hosted tours, clubs, installations and living libraries.
Alongside, Isabella is Contributing Editor at Scandinavia’s leading design and architecture publication Ark Journal, has contributed to a number of titles including British Vogue, Modern Weekly, 1 Granary, The Business Post, Cabana, The World of Interiors and Vogue Scandinavia amongst others.
