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| photo: William Crooks/Upstate Business Journal | |
Joe's Place Bookstore is reopening July 1 in the historic Pettigru District of Greenville, S.C. Upstate Business Journal reported that the new and used bookstore, coffee shop and wine bar will occupy a three-story, 4,400-square-foot location at 2 Williams St.
Mary Bernard, co-owner with husband and Alix, said that when people first learned the business was moving from 640 S. Main St., they expressed concern about it being off the main downtown drag, but she wasn't worried. "For us, foot traffic didn't always translate into sales," she noted. "Once people find out about us, they'll come here. We want to be a place where people stay and have meetings here."
The owners chose to keep much of the 1920s home's history intact. "We try to really respect the space," Mary Bernard said, citing the restoration of the oak hardwood floors on the first level and cedar floors upstairs as an example. "We were really happy to find the floors, because we didn't know what we'd find."
They worked with architects Craig Gaulden Davis "to make some necessary structural changes, including installing a second staircase leading to the upper level, opening a wall to allow the view from the front door to extend to the back Charleston-style porch, removing a couple of other walls to create nine total book rooms throughout the house, and making it ADA accessible," Upstate Business Journal wrote. "The additional staircase leads to a sunroom, three sides of which are windows that also feature a custom-made window seat that doubles as a bookshelf."
On the shop's website, the Bernards noted: "We appreciate everyone’s excitement about our new place."