Clark Kepler, longtime owner of Kepler's Books & Magazines, Menlo Park, Calif., founded by his father in 1955, is apparently retiring in the near future, and Kepler's will be restructured, "perhaps as a nonprofit," according to the Almanac News.
In the last month intense discussions have been held by investors and supporters--some of whom helped the store reopen in 2005 after its brief closure--employees and others about "Kepler's potential future as a nonprofit event space/for-profit bookstore hybrid."
In the past seven years Kepler estimated that the store has sold two million books, held 3,000 author events, collected $3 million in sales tax and donated $200,000 to schools and nonprofits. Still, it is barely breaking even.
Kepler told the paper that "after 32 years, I realize I'm not the force to make the necessary changes," and so he sought out Praveen Madan and his wife, Christin Evans, who have owned the Booksmith in San Francisco since 2007, for advice and involvement.
Kepler, the Almanac News wrote, "sounds invigorated by the thought of finding new ways to express his passion for locally owned businesses through channels such as Hometown Peninsula, which he co-founded."
In the last month intense discussions have been held by investors and supporters--some of whom helped the store reopen in 2005 after its brief closure--employees and others about "Kepler's potential future as a nonprofit event space/for-profit bookstore hybrid." In the past seven years Kepler estimated that the store has sold two million books, held 3,000 author events, collected $3 million in sales tax and donated $200,000 to schools and nonprofits. Still, it is barely breaking even.
Kepler told the paper that "after 32 years, I realize I'm not the force to make the necessary changes," and so he sought out Praveen Madan and his wife, Christin Evans, who have owned the Booksmith in San Francisco since 2007, for advice and involvement.
Kepler, the Almanac News wrote, "sounds invigorated by the thought of finding new ways to express his passion for locally owned businesses through channels such as Hometown Peninsula, which he co-founded."