[HN Gopher] How does an independent bookstore survive for 90 years?
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How does an independent bookstore survive for 90 years?
Author : elorant
Score : 31 points
Date : 2024-03-28 13:27 UTC (9 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (www.deseret.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.deseret.com)
| macspoofing wrote:
| They own the building/storefront (i.e. no lease and no mortgage)?
| If you're a retail outlet and you own the property outright, you
| can weather almost any storm.
| Ajay-p wrote:
| Until property taxes eventually push them out as it has done in
| some urban communities. Ownership is huge but prices will
| always rise so I think it's hard to ever let their guard down.
| bombcar wrote:
| Property taxes will eventually get you, but if the bookstore
| owns the building its in, it will (almost by definition) be
| able to sell for millions and move elsewhere, _if it wants
| to_.
|
| Usually (in my experience) it survives until the owner
| retires or dies, and then disappears.
| jandrese wrote:
| You pay the property taxes either way. It's not like the
| landlord can just make them go away, they just get hidden in
| the rent hikes.
| garciansmith wrote:
| I worked at a used bookstore for many years, and this is what
| the owner told me how he managed to stay in business for more
| than 40 years in the same building. Especially since moving all
| your stock to a new location if you rent is a big pain.
| bombcar wrote:
| It can often be the line between success and failure;
| commercial rents are such a major portion of a service
| business's expense.
| loughnane wrote:
| I've heard this in several places. It's really key for
| longevity.
| jandrese wrote:
| Also, the company is privately owned or the owner is also a
| majority stakeholder. Otherwise owning the building is a
| liability that venture capital types will exploit to pay
| themselves back for the expenses of taking over your company.
| smogcutter wrote:
| Surely you mean an asset, not a liability?
| amcaskill wrote:
| My family operated a jewelry store this way for about 90 years.
|
| "Brick Shithouse" was their term for it.
|
| "An article built more robustly than its function requires;
| implies an element of indestructability."
|
| https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/brick_shithouse#:~:text=Nou...
| Ajay-p wrote:
| I see a lot of similarity between indie book stores, and bicycle
| shops. Both ebb and flow as seasons, tastes, and availability
| change, in addition to competing with big box and online stores.
| They are part of our communities that appeal and serve broad
| segments of people, supporting them should be encouraged.
| ghaff wrote:
| Funnily enough, I was walking down the street in a nearby city
| before a play to see what was new. I sort of mentally observe
| that a bike store in the area was still there that had been
| there 45 years ago when I was an undergrad and probably wasn't
| new then.
| INTPenis wrote:
| I don't think surviving for 90 years is the problem, the
| challenge would be surviving for the next 10 years. Or if we're
| being optimistic and poetic, another 90 years.
| 1letterunixname wrote:
| Powell's (Portland) and City Lights (SF) are worth mentioning and
| should be on your bucket list.
|
| 0. Powell's is massive.
|
| 1. How many bookstores can claim they published Ginsberg?
|
| 2. The used bookstore collapse from 2002-present has been a slow-
| moving, silent killer of independent bookstores. Davis, CA had a
| half dozen bookstores until Borders moved in. Then Borders went
| bust in 2011 and they were left nearly a book desert. This
| mirrors, in a more minor way, food deserts that Walmart's
| expansion and contraction brings.
|
| https://daviswiki.org/Bogey%27s_Books
|
| https://daviswiki.org/Gayle%27s_Books
|
| https://daviswiki.org/Orpheus_Books
|
| https://daviswiki.org/Sweet_Briar_Books
|
| https://daviswiki.org/The_Next_Chapter
| monknomo wrote:
| I really miss having quality used bookstores. I used to live
| somewhere with a Friends of the Library that was top notch. And
| things like http://www.wavebooks.com/ are also top notch. But
| they sure aren't everywhere
| huytersd wrote:
| I luckily have one where I live. I love the prices. They're
| always $2-4 and makes it so easy to find something you would
| never otherwise stumble upon.
| Simulacra wrote:
| Strongly recommend Better World Books. It's a unique
| nonprofit that sells used books to fund adult literacy
| programs. Free shipping. www.BetterWorld.com
| ghaff wrote:
| Although I guess it is something of a tourist magnet, The
| Strand in NYC is probably also worth mentioning. (But then so
| are the two you mention.)
| greenie_beans wrote:
| the amazon hemorrhaging already happened and the industry
| stabilized. new indie stores are trending up:
| https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/10/books/bookstores-diversit...
|
| also: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/books-back-what-caused-
| bookst...
| abhgh wrote:
| If you're in the Bay Area and like visiting bookstores that have
| been around awhile, there are quite a few good ones here:
|
| * Bell's books, Palo Alto, ~89 yr. [1]
|
| * Moe's books, Berkeley, 65 yr. [2]
|
| * Green Apple Books, SF, 57 yr. [3]
|
| * City Lights, SF, 71 yr. [4]
|
| * Recycle Bookstore, San Jose, 57 yr. [5]
|
| * Feldman books, Menlo Park, ~25 yr. [6]
|
| * Borderlands, SF, 27 yr. [7]
|
| * Friends of the Palo Alto Library (Fopal), Palo Alto, ~54 yr,
| [8]. This is a used book sale (2nd weekend of every month) and
| not a bookstore per se, but it gets a special mention because of
| the price and breadth of books/topics. Esp. good for technical
| books (I have a $2 hardcover CLRS from here) - these are hard to
| find elsewhere. Los Altos library also conducts a pretty big
| sale, but that's not as frequent.
|
| I'm sure I am missing some!
|
| [1] https://www.bellsbooks.com/about
|
| [2] https://www.moesbooks.com/
|
| [3] https://www.greenapplebooks.com/store-history
|
| [4] https://citylights.com/our-story/a-short-history-of-city-
| lig...
|
| [5] https://www.recyclebookstore.com/about
|
| [6] https://www.feldmansbooks.net/home
|
| [7] https://borderlands-books.com/v2/about/history/
|
| [8] https://www.fopal.org/history
|
| Edit: added fopal.
| m463 wrote:
| great list :)
|
| too bad so many have been lost. I think bookbuyers is
| completely gone now.
| kwhitefoot wrote:
| By starting decades before it became so easy to buy books online
| and by being willing to keep going through hard times.
| Essentially by being founded in a completely different time.
| There probably won't be any 90 year old bookshops in 90 years
| time.
| ghaff wrote:
| When it was generally a pain to order books that weren't in
| stock. That were generally not discounted--and when they were,
| not by much. No ebooks. More people used to read more books.
|
| Buying a load of used books was pretty much a monthly thing for
| me at one point. Now I might go to my library's annual book
| sale when it's $10 a bag.
| bombcar wrote:
| I used to stop by a used book store or two just to browse
| around and see what was out there.
|
| I don't do that anymore, and it's not only because there
| aren't any used book stores nearby.
| ghaff wrote:
| I used to do a semi-regular Saturday trip into Harvard
| Square to shop for books, music, and other things. Really
| just no need or interest to do that anymore. I don't need
| more stuff generally, don't buy physical music media for
| the most part, and while I may grab the occasional used
| book, I have a pretty large backlog and can have something
| on my Kindle in a minute. Mostly don't have a need or
| interest to browse in stores.
| bombcar wrote:
| That was a big part of it; I recall heading home from
| school and stopping in at the used bookstore, grab a
| interesting looking novel for 25 cents, read it on the
| way home, toss or donate it.
| loughnane wrote:
| I've got a book-related side project I hope to launch in a few
| months. In my quiet moments I like to dream it would support a
| bookstore as a part of it. They're great places and what makes
| them great is hard to find online.
| greenie_beans wrote:
| lemme get on your mailing list, love to know what's going on
| with new stuff in the book world. i have a book-ish side
| project too: https://www.bookhead.net/marketing/
| loughnane wrote:
| If you're in Boston we've still got a few great ones. I'm partial
| to used books
|
| - Commonwealth
|
| - Brattle
|
| - Brookline Booksmith
|
| - Harvard
|
| - Rodney's (though it moved)
|
| Also if you like old bookstores you'd probably find The book "in
| praise of good bookstores" a delightful read.
| abhgh wrote:
| Seconding the book recommendation. The author is Jeff Deutsch
| who is the director of the Seminary co-op bookstores, Chicago.
| These also have been around for a while. I have been to the one
| in the Univ. of Chicago campus, and would recommend visiting!
| loughnane wrote:
| Was such an intimate, sober, loving look at bookstores.
| Really great.
| wenc wrote:
| The Seminary Cooop on the UChicago campus is excellent -- I
| spent many afternoons there. Also there are many book events
| by famous authors.
|
| Down the street is the 57th St bookstore which is less
| academic, and also a great place to find more popular books.
| underlipton wrote:
| I know some might chafe at me recommending a Youtube video
| about reading, but I came across this one a few years ago, and
| it's an interesting exploration of modern bookstores and the
| dynamics of reading as a pursuit in the age of social media:
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIW5jBrrsS0
| dghlsakjg wrote:
| I don't fully understand it, but the I5 Corridor in Washington
| hosts an exceptional number of used bookstores.
|
| It seems like every tiny town has a decent one.
|
| My favorite is Easton's Books in Mt. Vernon, WA. Massive
| selection of paperbacks, as well as great collectible books as
| well.
| brightball wrote:
| Didn't Amazon start out selling books? Might explain some of
| it.
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