The third Book Buddies visit, the program sponsored by Bookazine and the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association, differed somewhat from its predecessors in that the host bookstore was not primarily seeking help and advice. Instead, WORD bookstore in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn, N.Y., was more of a gathering place for some energized booksellers, who were introduced to the store by Christine Onorati, who opened WORD almost two years ago after owning a bookstore on Long Island for six years (Shelf Awareness, May 1, 2007).
Greenpoint has been traditionally a Polish neighborhood, so much so that many storefronts have signs in English and Polish, and there are two Polish-language bookstores. (WORD advertises itself locally as an "English store.") Sometimes people come in the store and begin speaking Polish with the staff.
But Greenpoint has also attracted "lots of people in their 20s and 30s," many of whom have young children--these are the bulk of WORD's customers. They like hip, edgy titles. One well-stocked section near the front is called "Pop Culture, Sex and Humor." There are also plenty of board books and picture books but few YA titles. Bookazine's Ron Rice, an authority on the subject, called WORD "a hip, cool place."
The store's decor is a comfortable blend of tasteful and friendly. The hardwood floor is beautiful; the colors of the walls and details are nicely coordinated. There is an ample supply of exposed brick. Scattered about the matching shelves are clean, elegant Shelfwiz shelf talkers--but all notes in them are handwritten. Margot Sage-EL, owner of Watchung Booksellers, Montclair, N.J., said that WORD had "done incredibly well with the space."
The store has a "book of the month" club, with a 10% discount. February's pick is Charlatan: America's Most Dangerous Huckster, the Man Who Pursued Him, and the Age of Flimflam by Pope Brock, now out in paperback. WORD also has a loyalty program offering $5 for every $100 spent, which it is currently promoting as its very own "bailout plan."
Since opening, the store has doubled the number of books in inventory as it learned more about the customers and their tastes. "We grew into the space," Onorati said. Still, "we can't be everything to everyone," she continued. "We're small, so selection is key." WORD carries "just enough hardcovers to face out every single one." The store does many special orders. The store on Long Island was larger, so "it was bad if we didn't have what they wanted," Onorati said, adding that customers at that store "couldn't be any more different" from the ones in Greenpoint.
Stationery is the store's major sideline. Onorati orders from "small, independent card companies," and sell lots of journals, too. "Moleskine is king."
The main floor has about 1,000 square feet of space. The basement, which is for events and book club meetings, has about 850 square feet. The renovated building had not been used for retail in 40 years, so Onorati did all the work--"flooring, walls, partition, the basement."
The basement features a small stage with theater lighting that was built by a local comedian who puts on shows in the space twice a month. It's his own show that he promotes, but "it's good PR," Onorati said, adding that she "loves having a dedicated space," and that authors "like having any space." Eventually she might stock books in the basement, too.
Manager Stephanie Anderson, who started earlier this month and is also a columnist for Shelf Awareness, will "work on the children's business," as part of her myriad duties, Onorati said, because so far, WORD "has not done much with schools."
Like the book selection, events have evolved at the store. "At first, we were not so picky," Onorati said. Now the store is "trying not to have single-author events," preferring to host two authors at a time or as a panel. She noted that in the past six months, attendance at events has declined somewhat, "but the fact we have events seems to help the reputation of the store."
Margot Sage-EL described a bit of a "malaise" about events and said her store focuses on local author events. "It's our responsibility," she said. "It's their night to shine."
WORD is on Facebook and recently began tweeting. Onorati noted that Facebook invitations to events seem to mean more than store newsletter invitations.
Among a few other topics that arose:
Clinton Book Shop, Clinton, N.J., uses plain old-fashioned Post-It notes for shelf talkers.
Some booksellers don't like to use the phrase special orders with customers. Anderson said she likes to say, "We're placing an order today" or "We've ordered it." Rita Maggio, owner of BookTowne, Manasquan, N.J., said she says, "It's not here now, but will be here tomorrow."
Bookazine's Ron Rice said that the Book Buddies group (the most recent participants pictured in the WORD event space above) is looking to set up more meetings soon and hopes they will become a kind of "mini Winter Institute. It's a grain of something that could be a bigger sense of community." He's also had discussions about having book buddy meetings in Southern Independent Booksellers Association territory.--John Mutter