Congratulations to the Northshire Bookstore, which celebrated the 50th anniversary of its shop in Manchester Center, Vt., on August 8. Northshire also operates a store in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
That's how we normally begin bookstore birthday notes in Shelf Awareness for shops marking significant milestones. With Northshire, however, I wanted to expand a little on the good wishes because, as somebody inevitably says in every police movie or TV series ever made, "This one's personal."
I joined the Northshire staff in in 1992, and worked there full-time as a bookseller and buyer until 2006, then part-time for three more years after that. Unfortunately, illness forced me to miss the recent birthday party itself, but I was there in spirit, and this column is my small contribution to the celebration.
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| Co-owner Nicole Ihasz (l.) with Barbara Morrow and Ed Morrow, founders and former owners | |
Northshire's director of events Rachel Person filled me in on some of the birthday party details: "I've been planning events at Northshire since 2013--including the festivities around the opening of our Saratoga Springs store that fall--so it was a tremendous honor to get to organize our 50th anniversary celebration on August 8.
"We knew when we started planning that we wanted a day that would feel special to everyone who walked in the door--whether they were a longtime customer or a first-time visitor. The public portion of the day included balloons, a prize wheel, a photo booth, a magician, a book trivia scavenger hunt, a face painter, a live broadcast from the local indie radio station, and special story times for our youngest readers. It really did end up feeling like a party all day long--not just for our customers, but for our staff too. I loved how enthusiastically our booksellers embraced the chaos (gosh did they have fun helping folks spin that prize wheel!)."
Northshire paused at noon for a ribbon cutting, with owners past and present, along with local dignitaries, speaking about the role the store has played in the community. A resolution honoring the bookstore, which was passed recently by the Vermont state legislature, was also shared.
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| From left: Cathleen Ihasz (co-owner), Nicole Ihasz (co-owner), Scott Austin (co-owner & COO), Ashley Ihasz-Austin (co-owner) | |
The birthday festivities continued with a private after-hours party in the store. About 100 current and former employees, local VIPs, publishing professionals, and authors gathered to enjoy food, drink, and music from local band The Balky Boyz. There was also a pause to recognize the many Northshire employees who have worked at the store for more than 10 years, including several who have been with the store for more than 30.
"It was such a great (if exhausting) day--and it felt amazing to recognize the people who have worked tirelessly over the years to build Northshire into the hub of our community that it has become," Person said.
Since my Northshire memories are largely suspended in a specific moment in time when the bookstore was a key part of my daily life, I'll let the Manchester Journal--which recently published a nice glimpse at the Northshire's history--fill in some of the gaps. Here's a capsule version:
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| Former owner Chris Morrow (left), with Rachel Person, director of events | |
In 1976, Ed and Barbara Morrow (along with their young sons Chris and Andy) opened the Northshire Bookstore in a smaller space just across the street, then moved in 1985 into the historic former Colburn House. They expanded the space significantly in 2003, then added the Saratoga Springs store 10 years later.
In the spring of 2021, co-owners Ed, Barbara, and Chris Morrow (who was also general manager) sold the business to Clark and Lu French. "However, due to an illness, they sought new stewards for the store shortly after their purchase," the Manchester Journal wrote. "By late 2022, the current ownership team--siblings-in-law Scott Austin and Nicole Ihasz, along with Cathleen Ihasz, and Ashley Ihasz-Austin--took the reins."
Nicole Ihasz recalled: "It was a gut 'yes' from all of us to do this because, as I said, this store is so meaningful to us and our family, but it's also so meaningful to many others. We hear that all the time--'I came here as a kid, then I brought my kids here, and now I'm here with my grandkids.' "
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| Manchester event coordinator Kendall Dorsey (l.), Llama Llama, bookseller Hayley Lowberg | |
What does the Northshire's 50th birthday mean to me? The answer is not simple... or maybe it is. When I began working at the bookshop in 1992. I could not have anticipated that this new job (my first in the book trade) would eventually--and I write this not simply for dramatic effect--profoundly change my life in more ways than I can count, personally as well as professionally.
I found that I had an aptitude for handselling, and thrived spending my days in conversation with talented readers and colleagues who loved books as much as I did. Customers wanted my recommendations (which baffled me at first), and their insatiable thirst for new writers inspired me to read more, and more attentively and diversely, than I ever had before.
When I began my career as a Northshire bookseller, I suppose I considered myself well-read, whatever that means. Now, many years and hundreds of books later, I feel anything but well-read. Each book I open reminds me of the ones I haven't read yet, or read so long ago that they have drifted from memory. The trick, I suppose, is to set sail across this uncharted sea of words like an explorer rather than succumb to it like a drowning victim. I can do that on most days because I'm a reader... and a bookseller for life. It's my best side.
Thank you, Northshire Bookstore. And Happy 50th!