Donald Barliant, co-owner of Chicagoland bookstore chain Barbara’s Bookstore, has died. He was 86.

Barliant purchased the original Barbara’s Bookstore in 1967 and helped the store expand across Chicago and the United States. At its height, the chain had more than 50 locations, primarily around Chicago and at O’Hare airport, as well as shorter-lived outlets at Boston’s South Station, New York’s Laguardia Airport and Philadelphia International Airport, and at one point starting in 2012, in more than 40 Macy’s department stores across the U.S. Today, the chain has 11 locations, including six in and around Chicago and five at O’Hare.

Barliant told PW in a 2009 interview that he bought the then four-year-old store to distract himself from his day job as an attorney. Barliant will be remembered, in part, for having won a personal injury case involving a spectator who was hit by a golf ball and lost an eye while eating a hot dog at a golf tournament.

He took an unorthodox approach to bookselling and introduced the idea of selling books in a variety of store-formats, smaller, boutique locations to larger format stores, as well as in transit hubs, which served as a catalyst for the chain’s expansion. He also championed the idea of adding book sections non-book retailers like Macy’s and at large-scale events, such as conferences and conventions. “Retail bookselling. . .requires us to find the niches, the nooks, the crannies," Barliant told PW. "What we're trying to do is to bring books to people where they are, rather than waiting for our customers to come in through the door."

Barliant never retired and continued to run the chain with his wife Bailey up until his death at his home in Santa Fe earlier this month.

“Don was a trusted advisor, confidant, and source of wisdom on all topics for countless family members and friends from all walks of life who constantly sought his counsel," reads an obituary published at Legacy.com. "He was both brilliant and a true mensch, large in stature and presence, and will be deeply missed by those who had the great fortune to know and love him.”

A private memorial is planned for the end of January.