Around Indies

Canada’s McNally Robinson to Be Sold to Employees

Bookstore co-founder Paul McNally has announced that a price has been agreed on and a three-to-four-year process has begun to sell Canada’s McNally Robinson Booksellers to Chris Hall, the company’s senior inventory manager for the past 16 years, and Lori Baker, the controller for six years. McNally Robinson has locations in Winnipeg and Saskatoon.

Though no shares have been transferred yet, mentoring of the new owners is underway, McNally told the Winnipeg Free Press, adding that he and Holly McNally, his wife and store co-founder, will work to make the transition seamless.

The McNallys are both in their 60s, and Paul McNally told the Free Press that they “really shouldn’t be doing this for too, too much longer.”

The McNally’s daughter, Sarah McNally, is the owner/operator of McNally Jackson in New York City.

Community Bookstore Partners for New Literary Series

Brooklyn, New York’s Community Bookstore has partnered with Congregation Beth Elohim to offer Brooklyn by the Book, a monthly reading and lecture series at Congregation Beth Elohim. The events, which focus on current events, and literary fiction, are designed to provoke discussion, celebrate the life of the mind, and tap into the rich culture of writing and reading in Park Slope and the broader community of Brownstone Brooklyn.

DIESEL Names Event Coordinator

Lynn Aime has been named event coordinator at DIESEL, A Bookstore, which has locations in Los Angeles, Malibu, and Oakland, California. Working out of the Malibu store, Aime will handle events at all three locations.

“Lynn is a wonderful bookseller, as well as having been a vice president of marketing and publicity for a film company specializing in marketing and distributing films by Paramount and Universal internationally,” said DIESEL co-owner John Evans. “She has extensive experience working on events, large and small, and was a company liaison to producers, directors, and actors.  She brings her considerable publicity and marketing chops to her expanded bookseller role as event coordinator at DIESEL.”

Wichita Bookstores Are Optimistic

Wichita, Kansas’ three indie stores are optimistic about the future, the Wichita Eagle reported this week. In a tumultuous economic environment, the owners of Watermark Books, Book-a-Holic, and Eighth Day Books believe their local roots and a willingness to adapt to change are big factors in their ability to survive.

Watermark owner Sarah Bagby has taken several steps over the years to remain competitive, including the addition of a café and an increased emphasis on events. In addition, Watermark and Book-a-Holic cater to customers by selling e-books.

The Eagle noted, however, that Bagby’s plans for the future are rooted in how she’s run her bookstore since it opened in 1977: “We just figure it out,” she said. “We want to stay vital to the community, manage our inventory to sales, have the right mix of events, book clubs and traffic, being as smart as we can be about the business.”