Longtime staff member Myles Mickle is in the process of buying Village Square Booksellers, Bellows Falls, Vt., from Alan and Pat Fowler, "who have been the driving force behind the bookstore since 2000," the Brattleboro Reformer reported.
Mickle, who has worked at the bookshop for seven years, said the sale will likely be completed in early January: "We're waiting for the state and a rubber stamp from the lawyers."
The Fowlers are going to retire and will continue their volunteer work in the area. Both have been very involved in the community, with Alan Fowler devoting his energy to Main Street Arts in Saxtons River and Pat Fowler to the Bellows Falls Historical Society. "I'm going back to my original career as an archivist," she said.
Mickle and his husband, Jon Midura, are purchasing the business and plan to both continue what the Fowlers established and to expand. Midura will stay in his position at the Windham Antiques Center in Bellows Falls.
"I'm happy to take over the business," Mickle said. "We're keeping the same name, the same services." He wants to expand the children's toy department downstairs, in an area that was used primarily for storage. "Books will have room to expand. We're going to bring it back to retail.... We'll do most of the work ourselves."
Pat Fowler said that since the Covid-19 pandemic, which forced the bookstore to close for a while, the store has rebounded strongly, and people are using the website to order books more, especially younger customers. Village Square Booksellers has also hosted meetings of various groups, including the local Democrats and the board of civil authority, as well as a knitting group, regular poetry readings, and a writing group.
"The bookstore is a huge part of the community," said Mickle.