Little Professor bookstore, Homewood, Ala., is moving "down the block to the former Nadeau building, located at 2738 18th St. S.," the Star reported, adding that while the plan is for the new space to open in early spring, the move itself is 50 years in the making. Little Professor began in what is now the Cottage Basket, before relocating to a building that has since been replaced by the Valley Hotel. In 2017, the store moved to its current 18th Street location.
"Everything will feel very updated," said owner Meredith Robinson, adding that the new location will offer an outdoor space, an expanded children's area, a second floor and more. It is envisioned as a place where customers can come not just to purchase new books, but to meet friends, enjoy a cup of coffee and sit to read or study.
When Robinson and her husband, Jonathan, bought Little Professor in 2020, they began looking for a long-term partner to build out a new space. Then Nadeau moved and the furniture store's previous space became available. "Being across from the Valley Hotel is a great location and the design of the store's new building will help beautify the city even more," the Star noted.
Aesthetically, in addition to more open space, the store will have new shelves, along with all-natural surfaces like marble and wood. Robinson said the changes will make the bookstore more "warm and inviting," and she hopes people not only come to buy books but to sit in the space, to "reset [their] day" and to use it as a space to decompress.
Although the square footage is about the same, with less back-of-house space for offices and storage it will look like more, Robinson added. There will be about 20% more inventory and about 50% more seating space. The children's area will also have expanded inventory.
Little Professor recently opened a second location, at Pepper Place in downtown Birmingham, which will be helpful during the transition, the Star wrote, noting that "the downtown location has served as an inspiration for what the owners want with the new Homewood location."