The beginning of a new year signaled the end for Bodhi Tree Bookstore, West Hollywood, Calif., which closed Saturday after 40 years in business. On the shop's website, co-owners Stan Madson and Phil Thompson noted that the "doors are closed and the shelves are empty but our spirit remains alive and vibrant." They "are continuing to talk to people interested in the Bodhi Tree Bookstore legacy. We are hopeful for a reincarnation of a physical store in a few months at a new location."
The Los Angeles Times reported that the co-owners "are in negotiations with a potential buyer of the Bodhi Tree name, its website and database." Madson conceded that they had seen the need to change the business for some years--including the addition of nonbook inventory and live-streaming capacity to expand the audience for Bodhi Tree speakers--but "he wasn't quite comfortable or interested in evolving."
"We're in some sense a little bit hidebound," he said.
Thompson noted that some customers have "have burst into tears" in reaction to the store's demise, while others shared stories of how Bodhi Tree became a life-altering place of refuge for them. "There's happiness and sorrow," he observed. "But with the book world undergoing such change, it feels O.K. to turn it over to newer and more creative minds."
A sale of the store last fall fell apart at the last minute. Madson and Thompson sold the store building several years ago.