When CMS missionaries arrived in Nigeria in the 1850s, some settled in Marina, Lagos where they opened a small corner store selling Bibles and other Christian articles.[3] The building hosting the store was later purchased and a new structure was built in 1927, this structure was dedicated by Bishop Melville Jones. The CMS commercial venture later changed its name to CSS, Church and School Suppliers. [3]The previous building was demolished and the current Bookshop house was built in 1973.[3]