Around Indies

Book Passage Owner Recounts Winter Institute Optimism

Bill Petrocelli, the co-owner of Book Passage, which has two locations California’s Bay Area, wrote for the Huffington Post about the optimism that was in abundance at January’s Winter Institute.

Petrocelli credits the optimism in part to the “locavore” mentality that has been gaining popularity, as well as the new stores and owners popping up all over the country that bring “a spark of new energy and ideas.”

Booksellers “probably sense a growing return-to-their-roots attitude among many readers,” he wrote. “While about a third of all books sold in America come from a narrow group of “best-sellers” stacked in piles in warehouse clubs, there are many more readers who crave a far greater selection than such clubs can offer. And the online world doesn’t really fill that need...What these new booksellers see is that in a world awash with unfiltered data and anonymous opinions, readers have an increasing need for a face-to-face, honest relationship with a knowledgeable bookseller who might actually know who they are and what they like to read.”

Wisconsin Booksellers Discuss World Book Night on Public Radio

On Monday, Lanora Haradon, owner of Next Chapter Bookshop in Mequon, and Stacie Williams of Boswell Book Company in Milwaukee, discussed the origins and importance of World Book Night on Milwaukee Public Radio.

The goal of the event, which takes place on April 23, is to give away one million books to those who might not have access to books. Volunteers can sign up to be a giver on the WBN website. “This is a cause very dear to my heart,” said Haradon. “Books are more than just entertainment, they can change a life.”

Kepler’s Prepares for the Future

On Tuesday, the Kepler’s Transition Team, a group of local business and community leaders, announced the launch of “Kepler’s 2020,” an initiative to transform the Menlo Park indie into a community literary and cultural center. The project aims to create an innovative hybrid business model that includes a for-profit, community-owned-and-operated bookstore, and a nonprofit organization that will feature on-stage author interviews, lectures by leading intellectuals, educational workshops and other literary and cultural events.

The two organizations will be separate legal entities that will collaborate closely to bring people together around ideas and books to foster intellectual discourse and civic engagement in the community.

A volunteer transition team, led by Praveen Madan, a literary entrepreneur and co-owner San Francisco’s The Booksmith,  has begun work on a comprehensive development, financial and

Clark Kepler, who has served as the bookstore’s CEO since 1981, is retiring on January 31 but will participate in the transformation project in his capacity as Kepler’s board chair and transition team member.

RiverRun Sets Reopening Date

Tom Holbrook, owner of RiverRun Bookstore in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, has announced Friday, February 10, as the store’s reopening date in a new location on Fleet Street.

On the store’s blog, Holbrook said, “The new store will be ridiculously beautiful. The folks at The Ben Franklin Block are pulling out the stops to give the space a stylish, historic feel. Yes, the store will be smaller, but it will be cozy, and filled to the brim with the best books we can find.”

Duck’s Cottage to Open Branch in Manteo

Duck’s Cottage in Duck, North Carolina, is opening a branch store in the former location of Manteo Booksellers, which was forced to close in September due to damage caused by Hurricane Irene. Duck’s has been slowly announcing the news throughout the week on the store’s Facebook page.

In one part of the announcement, a message reads “[Manteo’s] presence on the Outer Banks is sorely missed, but their legacy lives on...”