Readers Books Expands for More Events and New Inventory Mix
by John High -- 2/1/99
Readers Books of Sonoma, Calif., which three years ago won Doubleday Dell's national p try award for the best community-oriented p try contest in the country, has expanded, not only in square footage but by including a large section of used books as part of its inventory. Last summer, owners Lilla and Andy Weinberger purchased a building directly across the street on East Napa, almost doubling Readers floor space from 2000 to more than 3500 square feet. The new area will house the used books section and provide a venue for author events. The Weinbergers have brought in 3000 used books and increased their total title base to over 20,000. With no other independent in Sonoma County, they are particularly excited about expanding the used section -- and the opportunities it offers to poke around at garage sales, antique shops and other peoples' bookstores in an effort to find less expensive versions of the titles their customers want. "We know our customers. The town is small enough and we spend enough direct time with them that we know their interests. And it spreads the wealth around, too. Customers buying new books know that we'll buy back the titles and resell them. It's a great for recycling," explained Lilla Weinberger. Another advantage to the expansion is that the existing building, which contains three small interconnected rooms, only had space for 30-40 people to attend author events, whereas the new building can seat up to 100. Kathleen Caldwell, the new events coordinator, is now organizing as many as four readings a week. In an innovating bookselling maneuver, Caldwell contacts teachers in the public schools, inviting classes to come to the store to attend author events. "We sold 100 copies of Melissa Bay Mathis's Earthsong [Dutton]," said Weinberger, referring to the illustrator's in-store visit. As part of the Readers promotion, each attending class gets a free copy of the author's book. Teachers also send home advance order forms that students can then bring to the store to acquire signed copies of the book. Expanding out of their cramped quarters has also allowed the Weinbergers to pursue another passion: collecting rare books. To set the tone for the store's new look is a display of John Dunning's The Bookman's Wake (Pocket) and Booked to Die (Avon), mysteries whose protagonist is a rare book collector-as well as copies of Nicholas A. Basbanes's A Gentle Madness: Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books (Holt). Ann Lockett, a former specialty acquisitions librarian, has been hired as a new employee and eventual rare books buyer. The store owners also hope to hold classes on book collecting in the future. "We're beginning to develop a network among used and rare collectors. It's a lot of fun," said Weinberger. Back To Bookselling---> | 
