Second Flight Books in Lafayette, Ind., is in the process of purchasing downtown indie Main Street Books. In a Facebook post Monday, Second Flight wrote that co-owners Laura and Justin Kendall "will be taking over Main Street Books later this month. Tamzin Malone, the late owner of the store, was the best kind of friendly competition, and we enjoyed being part of the book world with her. She was a passionate community advocate and believed that every downtown should have a bookshop. We're hoping to keep her mission going with the purchase of the shop later this month.
"We'll have the same great location, but we'll be changing some things up a bit! We hope to have a wider variety of new books at the downtown location, and we're hoping to curate a larger selection of gift items as well! We don't currently have plans to make any major changes here at Second Flight Books. We hope to see you soon at Main Street Books, and please be patient with us all during this transition!"
The purchase comes about a year after Malone, who opened Main Street Books in 2015, died of cancer. The Kendalls launched Second Flight Books in 2016, and moved the shop to 2122 Scott St., its current location, a few years later.
Also sharing "the exciting news" of the ownership change, Main Street Books posted: "Our late owner and founder Tamzin Malone was a passionate community advocate and believed that every downtown should have a bookshop. She is sorely missed in the downtown community, but Laura and Justin hope to keep her dream and mission alive. We will continue to do business under the name Main Street Books in our same great downtown location, but Laura and Justin hope to curate a wider variety of new books and gifts at the downtown location! We will be hosting a public reception at Main Street Books on Friday, August 12 at 5 p.m. to say farewell to current owner Ted Malone and welcome our new owners to the downtown community. Please remember that change takes time and we could use your patience with us all during this transition. We hope to see you at Main Street Books!"