Congratulations to the Well-Read Moose Bookstore & Café, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, which recently celebrated its fifth anniversary with a special story time, family trivia, free wine tasting and a Moose Madness Prize Wheel. Before the festivities started, the bookshop posted on Facebook: "Thank you all for five fabulous years! We are here because you all shop local and support our local businesses here in Coeur d'Alene. We love that you come to us to find your next great read and to enjoy a beverage & relax in our cafe."
"When former finance executive Melissa DeMotte traveled for work, she made it a point to visit independent bookstores, but didn't envision owning one," the Spokesman-Review reported. Then Borders closed, "creating the need for a community bookstore.... DeMotte attended a one-day seminar about the bookstore business and after some research and contemplation, she opened The Well-Read Moose."
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"It's been really good. I feel like since our inception, our sales level has exceeded what I anticipated in the first five years," she said. "People are really enjoying browsing and talking to experts about books, and we have a good mix of tourism that helps as well. I've been pleased with our sales growth."
She hopes to see sales continue to grow and recently renewed her lease, but will consider the need for a bigger space in the future: "I don't think I want to open a second store, but it's more the question of, 'are we going to outgrow our space?' It's a problem, but a good problem."
DeMotte told the Coeur d'Alene Press she loves "that people can come here and have a quiet conversation. We have book clubs over in book-club corner, we have our own clubs we host and we probably have a dozen other clubs that meet. We've had Bible studies here, knitting, there's a grandma and grandson who come and they bring their chess board and play chess here. I love that. It's just a place to be."
She added: "I'm very proud. I get kind of emotional. It's been hard, but way more rewarding than I ever would have thought. I was excited because I love to read, but I didn't really grasp how much people would love us and how rewarding it would be."