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| Steamy Lit in Deerfield Beach | |
Steamy Lit romance bookstore, which opened earlier this year in Deerfield Beach, Fla., has added a second location, in Tampa. The Tampa Bay Business Journal reported that the bookshop has leased 500 square feet at Procure by the Women's Creative, a retail store and incubator with locations in South Tampa and St. Louis, Mo. A soft opening was held this past Sunday, December 1.
Steamy Lit has had three pop-ups in Tampa since July, and co-founder Melissa Saavedra said she believes the city is ready for a permanent location. The Tampa storefront represents a $10,000 investment.
The bookshop's top priority is celebrating diversity in romance novels. "That's something we pride ourselves on," Saavedra said.
She added that Tampa has always been her focus for a second location: "I love the Tampa area. I lived in San Diego for a really long time, and Tampa reminds me of San Diego. There's a sense of community; people are a lot more willing to get together and build community than [South Florida] is. It gets a little busy over here."
Saavedra continued: "We don't have enough third spaces where we can just hang out. I know for some people, businesses don't want folks to hang out in their space without consuming, but I also feel there's a level of accessibility where people can just hang out and read."