The recent sale of the Oscar Wilde Bookshop (Shelf Awareness,
February 2) was prompted by an age-old issue in New York City--real
estate. "Our lease was up for renewal, and it sparked a flurry of
conversation between the former owner and me," said Kim Brinster, the
longtime manager who bought the store from Deacon Maccubbin, the Lambda
Rising owner who himself had bought Oscar Wilde three years ago to save
it from closing. "It seemed like the right time to make the change."
Another impetus behind the sale: for seven years before Maccubbin bought the store, Brinster had sole responsibility for ordering books and sidelines and other day-to-day tasks. After that, some of those things were done centrally. "Deacon has a great organization, and it works well for him," Brinster commented. "But given the New York market and how quickly things come and go, it's important to have real-time control." Besides, she continued, "I guess I'm a control freak and wanted all the control."
As the new owner of the world's oldest gay and lesbian bookstore, Brinster recognizes that "the history of the store is an important part of why we have customers," as she put it in a conversation with Shelf Awareness. Although other neighborhoods are more popular from time to time, "the heart of gay and lesbian New York is the Village," she continued. "We're several doors down from the Stonewall Bar, which, of course, is on everyone's historic trail. Seventy percent of our customer base consists of tourists."
The tourists who visit Oscar Wilde tend to be international--from as many as 10 countries on any given day--and come year-round, though "January and February are not gangbusters for us," Brinster said. At times, there has been talk of moving the store, but, as she put it, "To go away from this site is to lose that base. We need to remember what we have been."
All kinds of traditions continue at the store, which has between 700 and 800 square feet of space. ("It was big in its day," Brinster said.) The store is not computerized. "In some stores, computers are helpful," she said. But in this small store, the staff knows where books are and "can help the customers find the books they want and encourage them to consider other books that might interest them. I want my staff to be out there touching the books."
Brinster said she believes the store's diminutive size has been an asset. In a larger space, "we couldn't sustain the business with the high real estate costs in New York. It's hard to turn over that many books. We don't try to carry everything that's in print. Some stores may be able to say they carry 14,000 titles, but if only 2,000 of those are of interest to the customers, you end up sitting on a lot of inventory."
Brinster also has an unusual attitude about competition. "As far as I'm concerned, we don't have competition," she said. "We're not competing with the Internet. We're not competing with Barnes & Noble. We don't have the resources to spend on a fabulous Web site or a 20,000-sq.-ft. store."
And with nearby stores like Three Lives & Co.--in her mind "the premiere general bookstore in the city"--Oscar Wilde has "more camaraderie than competition," she said. "We have a decent number of independent bookstores in this neighborhood, and we often refer customers to them, depending on what they're looking for."
If anything, "We compete with ourselves," Brinster continued. "We keep up with our monthly newsletter. We stay on top of the latest and greatest titles as well as our steady backlist. Our goal is helping people find what they want. Customer service is the most important thing to me. The store is a living organism, and we're constantly fine-tuning what we do."
Sometimes people comment to Brinster that "there is no need for gay and lesbian literature anymore in this 'post-gay' world." She said this makes her think about an Oscar Wilde customer who comes to the store faithfully once a week and buys every time she does. "She is extremely well-read, reads across the board, mystery, romance, trash, everything, but she finds something every time she comes in here," Brinster said. "People are thrilled to be in an environment that is all about them and their life experiences. The need for a store like this remains strong. Sometimes we get people who are just coming out. Sometimes family members of people who are coming out. Even in this 'post-gay, integrated world,' people need us."
In its early days, the Oscar Wilde Bookshop, founded in 1967, functioned as a community center as well as a bookstore. These days, Brinster said, New York has a wonderful large gay and lesbian center. "But we remain a premiere gay and lesbian bookstore," she said. "Each owner of the store has helped morph the store and has played an integral part in adding to those traditions. I think Deacon recognized my passion for the store and wanted to allow me to continue my journey. This is where I want to stay for the rest of my working life. It was a good passing of the torch."--Maria Heidkamp
Another impetus behind the sale: for seven years before Maccubbin bought the store, Brinster had sole responsibility for ordering books and sidelines and other day-to-day tasks. After that, some of those things were done centrally. "Deacon has a great organization, and it works well for him," Brinster commented. "But given the New York market and how quickly things come and go, it's important to have real-time control." Besides, she continued, "I guess I'm a control freak and wanted all the control."
As the new owner of the world's oldest gay and lesbian bookstore, Brinster recognizes that "the history of the store is an important part of why we have customers," as she put it in a conversation with Shelf Awareness. Although other neighborhoods are more popular from time to time, "the heart of gay and lesbian New York is the Village," she continued. "We're several doors down from the Stonewall Bar, which, of course, is on everyone's historic trail. Seventy percent of our customer base consists of tourists."
The tourists who visit Oscar Wilde tend to be international--from as many as 10 countries on any given day--and come year-round, though "January and February are not gangbusters for us," Brinster said. At times, there has been talk of moving the store, but, as she put it, "To go away from this site is to lose that base. We need to remember what we have been."
All kinds of traditions continue at the store, which has between 700 and 800 square feet of space. ("It was big in its day," Brinster said.) The store is not computerized. "In some stores, computers are helpful," she said. But in this small store, the staff knows where books are and "can help the customers find the books they want and encourage them to consider other books that might interest them. I want my staff to be out there touching the books."
Brinster said she believes the store's diminutive size has been an asset. In a larger space, "we couldn't sustain the business with the high real estate costs in New York. It's hard to turn over that many books. We don't try to carry everything that's in print. Some stores may be able to say they carry 14,000 titles, but if only 2,000 of those are of interest to the customers, you end up sitting on a lot of inventory."
Brinster also has an unusual attitude about competition. "As far as I'm concerned, we don't have competition," she said. "We're not competing with the Internet. We're not competing with Barnes & Noble. We don't have the resources to spend on a fabulous Web site or a 20,000-sq.-ft. store."
And with nearby stores like Three Lives & Co.--in her mind "the premiere general bookstore in the city"--Oscar Wilde has "more camaraderie than competition," she said. "We have a decent number of independent bookstores in this neighborhood, and we often refer customers to them, depending on what they're looking for."
If anything, "We compete with ourselves," Brinster continued. "We keep up with our monthly newsletter. We stay on top of the latest and greatest titles as well as our steady backlist. Our goal is helping people find what they want. Customer service is the most important thing to me. The store is a living organism, and we're constantly fine-tuning what we do."
Sometimes people comment to Brinster that "there is no need for gay and lesbian literature anymore in this 'post-gay' world." She said this makes her think about an Oscar Wilde customer who comes to the store faithfully once a week and buys every time she does. "She is extremely well-read, reads across the board, mystery, romance, trash, everything, but she finds something every time she comes in here," Brinster said. "People are thrilled to be in an environment that is all about them and their life experiences. The need for a store like this remains strong. Sometimes we get people who are just coming out. Sometimes family members of people who are coming out. Even in this 'post-gay, integrated world,' people need us."
In its early days, the Oscar Wilde Bookshop, founded in 1967, functioned as a community center as well as a bookstore. These days, Brinster said, New York has a wonderful large gay and lesbian center. "But we remain a premiere gay and lesbian bookstore," she said. "Each owner of the store has helped morph the store and has played an integral part in adding to those traditions. I think Deacon recognized my passion for the store and wanted to allow me to continue my journey. This is where I want to stay for the rest of my working life. It was a good passing of the torch."--Maria Heidkamp