Fireside Books & More opened recently at 2421 Broadway St. in Redwood City, Calif. Its first weekend "was packed with locals interested in the new storefront in the vibrant downtown," the Palo Alto Daily Journal reported, adding that a week before the new bookshop launched, owners Andrew Johnson and Taylor Kubota got married surrounded by empty bookshelves filled with personal mementos.
A day later, about 9,000 books were delivered, and the newlyweds have spent what might be considered their honeymoon in the shop, a fact they said feels like an apt reflection of the "the life we want to live."
"It all fit together," Johnson said. "It's about betting on the right things--betting on community and betting on the person that I love and getting our life in order with our values. Marrying Taylor and opening a bookstore, those things weren't unrelated.... It's about living the kind of life that we want to live. That life is rooted in our community, that life is local, that life is about sharing our love and our passion with people."
Early support from the community has been strong. "We think the way that this community came out for us during opening weekend and throughout this whole process, we think we'll have a chance to be here for a while," Johnson said. "We are over the moon with our opening weekend."
The shop's name is an homage to a bookstore Johnson frequented while growing up in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. The "interior is quaint, but has still made room for two red vintage seats with swans etched in the legs, placed in the style of conversation chairs with a chess board table in between. A children's dedicated space is also set up in the back of the store," the Daily Journal noted.
"We really do want it to be a place where people can feel like they can take a break and relax whether that's coming here after school or while waiting for the train," said Kubota. "We hope it's cozy, relaxing, welcoming."
In addition to books, the shop's 2,104-square-foot space also features cards, stickers, gifts and goods by local makers, such as birdhouses by LeighLee's Garden, and prints and jewelry by Wandergrove, RWC Pulse wrote.
For now, Johnson is essentially the sole staff member, having left his career in the medical technology industry. Kubota works at Stanford University, but will be spending plenty of her free time helping at the store as well.