Vero Beach Book Center Celebrates 35 Years

The Leonards, the owners of Vero Beach Book Center, in Vero Beach, Florida, are celebrating 35 years of bookselling.

Tom and Linda Leonard opened the store in 1975 with a staff of avid readers, hoping to cater to the residents of the seaside city. As the only bookstore within a 75-mile radius, Vero Beach Book Center developed a reputation for the quality of its customer service and making sure visitors received a truly unique experience. This allowed the Leonards to quickly build a loyal customer base.

The store's success gave them an opportunity to move in 1991 to a 12,000 square-foot building on one of the city's busiest corners. The relocation gave Vero Beach Book Center ample space for an extensive fiction section and provided more seating for its well-known author events. In 1997, the Leonards bought an adjoining building and expanded once again, increasing in size to 21,000 square feet and adding their prized children's section, as well as a place specifically designated to house remainders and discounted books.

The Leonards’ son, Chad, who now runs the store, said a combination of self-publicity and a full schedule of events has been key to keeping customers coming back.

“Word of mouth is always the best,” he said, “and we’ve done a lot with our website recently, which keeps people informed, especially people outside of the area. Our e-mail list is definitely one of our best tools.”

Vero Beach Book Center schedules several author visits per month as well as story hours and other activities for children. “Our events are really what attract people,” said Chad. They’re often covered by the local newspapers, he noted, and having a good relationship with the reporters has helped the store gain publicity.

Two weeks ago, the bookstore drew a crowd of more than 1,000 people with an appearance by Bobby Bowden, a college football icon and bestselling author, who recently penned his autobiography, Called to Coach. The former University of Florida coach attracted non-local fans to Vero Beach to attend the event.

On Monday, the store plans to host author Vince Flynn, whose latest book, American Assassin, was released this month. At the end of October, Jan Karon, author of the recently released In the Company of Others will make an in-store visit.

Though the store is certainly in its 35^th year, the owners are unsure of the exact opening date.

“We couldn't put our finger on it,” said Chad, “so we just extended it to a year-long celebration.”