MahoganyBooks closed its bookstore at the Anacostia Arts Center in Washington, D.C., on August 31, due to what co-founders Derrick and Ramunda Young described as "the changing landscape, the development they're going to be doing there." The Youngs are currently looking for a new location. They also operate a second store at National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Md., which launched in 2021.
In an Instagram Live post, Derrick Young said, "We opened up our very first store seven years ago now, in 2017, on Black Friday, in the Anacostia Arts Center in Southeast D.C. We've had an incredible, incredible amount of history we've made there. We're the first bookstore to open up in over 20 years there. And we've done a number of great things, hosted a lot of great events, great book clubs. However, due to some changes happening with the arts center in 2025, we have officially ceased operations at our Anacostia store.... We are, however, in the process of looking for a new location. We've been working with brokers for the last eight months or so."
Ramunda Young added: "We're also listening to our customers. The community that we're in we love. We were there intentionally to be in Anacostia, but we've heard time and time again that parking is a concern. People can't just pop in there and get their book when they need to. And so those things we've taken into consideration. Also in the center, there was a thriving ecospace for Black businesses. There's only a couple of businesses left, so it really hasn’t become that destination for so many of our customers and we really want that for the people who come and shop with us all the time."
Noting that their National Harbor store is about six miles away and is thriving, Young said that as they explore possible new locations for the former Anacostia shop, "we want to find that very special spot. It's very intentional for us. There's a lot of people saying, 'Come to our development, come to our shopping center,' and it's been great to hear that from the people that our brokers have been bringing to us. But it has to be a space that really feels cohesive with who we are and it has to be accessible with transportation, accessible for parking. Those things mean something to us. It's not just hopping where the brassiest, glassiest location might be, but a place that feels in synergy with who we are."
MahoganyBooks will continue to use the Arts Center for its Black Books Matter book club and selected events while the center is still open. Meanwhile, the search for a new space continues. "We really wanted to be intentional, and move with intention," Ramunda Young noted. "We want to land in a place that fits with us and who we are."