Some tips from the Pros on how to operate a successful bookshop.
Growing up in South Florida in the 70s and 80s, there was a great bookstore at the corner of US1 and Sunrise Blvd. in Ft. Lauderdale called “All Books and Records.” Though it’s been gone for probably a decade now, I still can picture the inside. With what had to be at least 20,000 square […]Read More
I am very late to getting up to speed on the Amazon/Hachette dispute. I apologize in advance to those for whom this post will elicit a giant Duh. Until a few months ago, I was a clueless civilian. Today, I still only have in stock approximately 100 titles and a handful of puzzles, selling at a farmers market […]Read More
I hope the readers of the Bookshop Blog can help me out here. What is a bookseller’s job description, especially when the bookstore has a staff of one? Because I have young children, I try to limit my work days to Wednesday-Friday, which are the days my elder daughter is at day camp. By the time […]Read More
I admit that there are occasions when I wonder if my business associates and I are delusional about opening a bookstore. Fortunately, those doubts are often put to rest when I read stories like this one: “Indie Booksellers: ‘Indispensible Players in Community Life.’” There are so many great quotes in this article that remind me […]Read More
by Jas Faulkner “How long ago was Bush president? No need to answer. It’s a rhetorical question. Take a look at this.” Sam, who was on book sorting detail, bent down out of frame of her webcam and straightened back up. In each hand she was holding a trade paperback. In her left was Molly […]Read More
Every bookseller knows the importance of great customer service BUT do we really get how important costumer service is, or is it? We pride ourselves on going the extra mile, on being knowledgeable and helpful. BUT let’s face it as consumers we have all gotten accustomed to, accepted even, what is at best lacking and […]Read More
by Jas Faulkner Lorraine* starts our interview by laying down a few ground rules. The first is that I am not allowed to describe her appearance or any other descriptors regarding her age, location, or level of ability. That last one might be a bit tricky, anyway. When I arrived almost an hour early at […]Read More
Here are the facts: There were almost 300,000 books published in the U.S. in 2012 according to our friends at Wikipedia. Nearly half of those titles are self-published. Publishers Weekly counted roughly 12,000 bookstores in the U.S. in 2013. Do the numbers and it isn’t difficult to see why retail booksellers are often overwhelmed with local […]Read More
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