The Shelf Bookshop, a general-interest independent bookstore in downtown Beaver Falls, Pa., made its debut as a pop-up shop on Small Business Saturday, the Times reported. Co-owners Erika Kauffman and Rebecca Bryant plan to open a permanent bricks-and-mortar store next spring, but for now are leasing a storefront for the month of December.
At present the store sells a mix of new and used titles for all ages, as well as gifts such as handmade candles and Christmas ornaments. Kauffman told the Times that the inventory mix may change throughout December and especially when the store opens in a permanent space.
"We want to get a feel for who our customer base will be, and what genres they're interested in reading," she said. "So we could curate it a little bit more once we open permanently."
The pop-up shop drew so many shoppers over the weekend, Kauffman and Bryant said, that they had to restock the shelves quickly. There was so much enthusiasm and support that the pair "feel very confident for the future."
After the pop-up's one-month lease ends at the end of the month, Bryant explained, the store will close for a few months. She and Kauffman will "get our lives together and figure out from this research what we have learned and what we can do to serve this community best, and hopefully reopen around March or April in a permanent location."