Carmichael’s is the oldest independent bookstore in the city, and the founders just passed over the reins to their daughter and niece. How do you “modernize” a bookstore – or do you? – The New York Times
As Sarah Malley discovered while working at an independent bookshop, some routine practices legally qualified at least in her state) as wage theft. And it’s far more common for indie bookstore employees to skip vacation and sick days because they can’t afford to take them. “Does a business that can’t afford to pay its employees … Continue reading “Do Indie Bookstores Really Need To Pay Their Workers So Badly?”
London is book-focused enough that, mirroring almost exactly the rise of Amazon, Persephone, a publisher (and recently a bookstore too) that focuses on forgotten early and mid-20th-century books by women, has been thriving. “The idea at the beginning was that if you like one of our books, you’ll like them all. … That has worked … Continue reading “Two Decades Of A Publisher, And Now Bookstore, Of One’s Own”
More than 6,000 staffers at Waterstones have signed a petition for the chain’s in-store staff to be paid a starting wage of £9 per hour (£10.55 in metro London), and 1,340 authors have signed a petition in support. Though the chain returned to profitability two years ago, its managing director says it can’t pay that … Continue reading “Britain’s Largest Bookstore Chain Says It Can’t Afford To Pay A Living Wage”
Since last summer, Wyden has been locked in a battle with local officials who want to name the Strand’s eleven-story building, which Wyden’s family owns, a city landmark. They argue that, in addition to its literary significance, the 1902 building—designed by William H. Birkmire, a pioneer of early steel-frame high-rises—represents “a particularly robust expression of … Continue reading “Is The Strand Bookstore A City Landmark?”
“The Landmarks Preservation Commission exists to safeguard ‘the buildings and places that represent New York City’s cultural, social, economic, political and architectural history.’ But this is not the same thing as safeguarding the city’s cultural, social, economic and political heritage. The emphasis is on buildings and places, not what takes place inside them.” — The … Continue reading “If New York City Wants To Landmark The Strand Bookstore (Against Its Owner’s Wishes), Just What Will That Protect?”
The bookstore in Argentina, which opened in a building modeled after the Paris Opera, won the title in 2019 – 18 years after NPR’s Bob Mondello first filed this report. – NPR
But he was in his 40s, and so it wasn’t as filled with possibility and joy as it might have been when he was in his 20s. “The bookstore is a liminal space. Even if like me you don’t have the cash to buy a box of new titles and reinvent yourself week to week, … Continue reading “A Man Walked Into A Bookstore”
Heck yeah, books and beer. Or really, books and a brewpub. How is this not in every city in the U.S. already? – The New York Times
Beloved Seattle bookstores were closing their doors throughout the aughts, and those who remained open seemed to face an impossibly uphill task — who would pay full price for a book when you could buy it for less online? But there’s more to an indie bookstore than the price on a book’s cover. In a … Continue reading “An Independent Seattle Bookstore That’s Thriving On Community”
