My girlfriend is getting investors together to try to open up a small bookstore, but she's going to try for a different angle, it's going to be small and carry mainly great works of philosophy and literature in Norton editions and things like that, and she's going to have coffee and t-shirts and posters and busts and stuff.
Basically, her idea is to cater to hipsters, I think. Just wondering if you think it's going to be successful, because I haven't told her otherwise yet.
>>7433528
>coffee
This is the only part of the draw that will really pull business. Just like gyms, the food she sells will be incredibly important, like it or not. She needs to really learn about good coffees (african, geisha, etc) and be able to put out really decent pastries and sandwiches. Also important is excellent wifi, USB plugs etc, comfy couches, ambience. Pure bookstores (unless you are at a beach community and own the property) have real problems without a service aspect.
>>7433528
I'd happily shop there if they had any kind of loyalty rewards program or other discounts.
That's really the biggest draw for bookstores for me, to make them competitive with online sources. Most bookstores are able to order anything you want anyway.
>captcha is coffee
>>7433528
So it has all of the viability of an independent bookshop in the era of Amaz*n, but with less appeal to mass tastes. I want to believe this can work desu. It depends on where it is located (i.e., a metropolitan area with a well-educated critical mass).
>>7433555
She's working with a consultant on the coffee and food.
>>7433528
Book cafés is nothing new OP. It could potentially work depending on the place, the execution and the "luck" factor but then I know nothing about business
>>7433528
i hope the coffee is good
>>7433528
Ignore, sage, and report pure ideology.
>>7433559
>I want to believe this can work desu
>desu
I know for a fact that I didn't type 'desu.' Seriously. I typed another dumb meme, granted, one that I've cringed at a hundred times but one that has lost its currency and therefore much of its most irritating qualities. It's the one with the letter T, then the letter B, then the letter H, but lowercase. There has to be some kind of scripting/filtering here.
>>7433580
>There has to be some kind of scripting/filtering here.
Masterful deduction Holmes.
>>7433580
I'll take the bait and say I hope you 're not that new
GOOD FUCKING LUCK LOL
>>7433528
>opening a successful business
>printed books
Pick one. The best outcome for this I can imagine is a cafe with a lending library in the back. Even then, small business ownership is volatile enough. Good luck to your girlfriend, especially if her business model is to rely on the passing trends hipsters monetarily gorge themselves on before moving on.
>>7433591
I kind of like the idea 2bLincoln, for how it can kill memes through overexposure. There are always others that follow though.
>>7433602
go back to reddit, word filters have been here for ages
>>7433595
Also I'm relieved that people aren't typing desu quite as often as it appears.
>>7433612
This tbqh family smfh lmao xD
>>7433605
It's never happened to me before due to my penchant for original thought.
There's a place in Tampa, Florida--the Oxford Exchange--which sounds fundamentally like what your girlfriend aspires to. They have a rotating collection of books, some interesting home goods, a nice coffee and tea bar, a fantastic lounge, and a regular meal cafe. The bookstore works because of all the other stuff.
You'll need the coffee, food, and lounge component to be successful. Also consider selling things other than books, like many current bookstores are doing... but avoid selling all the toys. Think pens, journals, cool stationary, scrapbooking stuff, perhaps all of the furniture in use could be for sale as well so you can continually change your look (I recall a few restaurants I've been to that do this effectively).
Good luck and I hope it works out, though prepare to lose money in the first year or two. That's the toughest part is surviving the hit to your principle capital.
>>7433605
You are such a CANDY-ASS. Roodypoos and jabronies are not allowed here. Do you understand you freaking CLUCK?
It would be great if the collection mainly consisted of philosophical works and classic literature, but there's no way that a book collection like that would attract more than a few readers. If your gf wants any business whatsoever, her store would have to carry popular pulp and genre fiction, especially considering that an inviting reading atmosphere would encourage people to do their reading in store without having to actually buy the book.
Personally, I would fucking love a place like that and would go there regularly, but unfortunately book stores, like every other store, have to cater to the consumer if they want to survive.
>>7433528
Good coffee, snacks, seating and wifi are paramount unless she's building it in a basement at Harvard or UChicago.
Carefully curated used books will draw in more people who actually buy books than stocking stuff those people read in college, but diversity is important in such a slow market. Trying to pick some "patrician" puzzle and self-help/religious books probably won't hurt.
Old people like regional/local history and lots of independent bookstores have a shelf for that.
For real though, if the cafe aspect is on point she'll probably get to sell some books too.
>>7433528
That's a terrible business model.
If you only carry classics, you are shrinking your customer base significantly.
Like others have said, market it as a coffee shop first and foremost, and you should be okay.
How pleb is your city?
>>7433656
this anon has good business sense imo
business ownership is hard and book businesses are even harder. i mean shit man at that point why not just open up a restaurant or swallow the sun it's pretty much the same thing
take all of that shit, add in a liquor license, maybe just wine/beer, and board games and it would be amazing.
location's super important though
>>7433580
lol I love hiro
>>7433793
Serving booze is an interesting possibility. Poster of >>7433656 here. If she has enough space, drinks could make it a gathering place, and people do buy books at shops like that. A good example is Trident (Triton?) on Newbury St. in Boston. They're basically a restaurant but their books selection is huge and pretty based.
If that's the angle then make sure all the translations are the best
Divide the store up into pleb and patrician sections
Make the patrician section a nice quiet sperate room maybe.
>>7433580
Did you literally just step in here off of reddit in the last day?
>>7433580
I'm not even mad desu
>>7433528
Is she sucking off the investors?
>>7433580
desu I can't argue desu
Tbh I think it's a terrible idea
Maybe look into selling local art there too. A coffee shop I go to does this and it's pretty cool. I've bought a few paintings.
There are always artists hanging around too (drinking coffee and eating, i.e. spending money).
>>7433528
What city?
>>7433580
Noice. Replying to the bait post.
>>7433580
baka
Name one reason why anyone should buy books from her shop, rather than just order some off of the internet.
You literally can't.
>>7433580
I'm going to keep typing "desu" after they remove the filter, desu.
>>7434091
Shipping costs
Supporting small business (if you're into that)
Hang out and read your new book instantly while drinking coffee
>>7434103
>Shipping costs
Even with shipping costs it's usually cheaper to buy online than in any store. Unless your shopping for used books that is.
I only support large corporations to be frank.
>>7433887
Since they're her cousins and an uncle, I doubt it.
If you can turn it into a study area for hipster students you'd probably do okay. Basically a library with good coffee. Sounds nice. Speaking of sounds don't play any music. Starbucks and all these other places get it wrong. No fucking music. It should be more like a library with people speaking in hushed tones with the occasional outburst of laughter. If people want music they can play their own
>>7434154
You need some soft ambient music at least or it will feel dead inside when it is not busy. Nothing loud and preferably no lyrics though.
If you can turn it into a study area for hipster students you'd probably do okay. Basically a library with good coffee. Sounds nice. Speaking of sounds don't play any music. Starbucks and all these other places get it wrong. No fucking music. It should be more like a library with people speaking in hushed tones with the occasional outburst of laughter. If people want music they can play their own>>7433580
Holy fuck dude I'm dying. That is sure to make a great pasta
>>7433528
My local bookstore does really well but they sell used books, have a huge selection, and have three or four readings per week.
It sounds like this store will likely not have readings, will sell expensive new books, and will have a limited selection of actual books. The apparel and accessories seem like a good idea to me. Coffee and or food is tough, though, because you have to actually have quality stuff otherwise people will just go somewhere else and that stuff is perishable so you could wind up losing money on it.
Ultimately, I think you need a better draw than just /lit/ the book store.
>>7433827
My city has a vinyl shop like this, and it is actually quite popular. Good coffee, wine/beer, comfy environment and a niche like vinyls/books can definitely work. On fridays the owner arranges for it to stay open until about 9 PM, usually bringing in a band or something. I don't know how profitable it is, but I live right next to it and there always seems to be customers whenever I walk by.
>>7433580
my top comment thanks reddesu
Look, the only way you could make this feasible is to make the coffee and food the main catch, and sell books and music on the side. If a coffee shop is the main focus, the books will serve to cement the aesthetic while drawing in normos and actual readers.
>>7433561
Have her ask her consultant about having an old timey, brass coffee machine. If she's going to use coffee as a selling point, make it fancy. How the coffee is prepared is the biggest thing, I think.
But it all depends on what kind of decor she's going for, but if you say it's a hipster crowd, I bet that'll do the trick. Also offer matcha (mate?). It tastes like fucking bile, but hipsters love it.
Something like this could work, but you have to really, really focus on building a community. The fate of the bookstore, to a lesser degree, is going the same way as the friendly local game store (RPGs, miniatures, etc). The only ones that are staying afloat in a major way are ones that diversify products and services, and have a strong, regular community.
Coffee and treats is a great way to start, consider branching into liquor service as well, if only wine and beer. Free, decent quality internet is a must, but that's obvious. Lots of well placed outlets are a must, and if you can have some that are directly USB that's also good. A pretty good idea that I've seen some places do is have rentable phone charger cubbies, you throw in a dollar or two, lock the cubby, and let your phone charge for an hour or two. You can alleviate the cost of buying the actual cubby setup if you just use a signup sheet type thing and charge them i a safe place behind the counter. In addition to selling books, maybe try some patrician board/tabletop games?
Going back again to community building, scheduled, publicized events are basically free marketing/traffic. Let a local school or university have poetry readings/slam poetry (though be careful, my work does this and its just tumblerinas talking about muh hardship, brings in tonnes of money though). Try having book signings with local authors, if you can; loudly promoting local authors is also a very good idea as it more firmly establishes a sense of community, and collaborating with creators is a good idea in ANY line of business. Brainstorming some other community ideas: board game nights (if you end up pandering to hipsters/nerds, having a quality GM run a game of some rules light ttrpg can also be good, but that's just me), coffee/wine/cheese/beer tastings, literature discussion nights (someone on staff can come up with a bunch of discussion points, etc. beforehand to spur conversation).
>>7433528
this desu
>>7434577
contd.
On food, stay away from anything that requires a significant amount of prep: instead make partnerships with local bakeries, and sandwich shops if you feel the need for heavier fare.
>>7434171
Regarding this anon, he couldn't be more wrong. Music is absolutely vital, the trick is in selection. Don't let staff just put on whatever they feel like, it's almost always a bad idea: my employees at my work will play their own music if I don't tell them not too, and I'll come back after a week away to find they've started playing drill rap at 6am, putting on weird /mu/core trash during peak normie hours, etc. The key with music in this kind of shop is to appeal to your desired clientele: pseudo-intellectual hipsters, while making sure the music won't alienate a more normal audience, and that it won't be too distracting from reading. Sufjan Stevens is a prime example of this, but I personally recommend staying with instrumental music only.
>>7434500
This anon has the right idea. Put a lot of effort into making sure your coffee is of a high quality, not just in beans but in actual production as well. Make sure ALL employees know how to make all of the drinks to a high standard right out of the gate, none of this learning on the spot nonsense.
Some other anon made mention of used books, which are another huge draw for hipsters. New editions of philosophy and classics are great, but hipsters LOVE used books. Have a buy and sell sort of thing for used books, but make sure you have a solid plan for buying used books before you start.
>>7434619
>drill rap at 6am
I like how your employees think.
Is there money in coffee and brownies and shit today than there used to be, or is there just less money in everything else? I've lost count of the number of bookshops, record stores, games workshops etc. in my town that have closed down and been replaced with generic coffee shops. And they're always busy, even so there's so many of them.
Where will this shop be? If it's near where I am I would gladly support it. I won't even request TLOTITT.
>>7434670
meant to ask
>is there MORE money in coffee and brownies and shit today than there used to be
>>7433793
>liquor license
adds too much of a tax burden to justify it
>>7434717
I think it's just the decline of book/game stores honestly. With the Internet and video games becoming the primary source of entertainment over the last decade or two, people just don't read and play games like they uses to. Combining with cafes/bars is the only way these businesses are staying afloat, as sad as that is.
Just an idea, you could potentially draw more customers by buying some sound equipment and speakers and building a small stage. You could get local hipster bands to play at night, it would draw their friends in. Also, the stage could be used for poetry contests, lectures, whatever you want... It's a little thing that makes good bookstores great
Also, what metro area are you in? I'd hang out there if it ever comes about.
>>7434789
The only drawback to this is it costs a fair bit of money, takes up a fair bit of floorspace, and is a bit of a gamble. If the local music scene is shit, or you don't have any connections, it can flop very quickly.
A better idea is to have a section of your store be easily convertible to a performance area. Going off what OP described, this would probably only need to be enough for an electric keyboard and two or three seated guitarists. You won't want to have drums save for small, hand portable drums and maybe a snare: proper drums are a nightmare in a small venue.
>>7434797
This is also a great question. please be in
LONDON
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D
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N
>>7433580
This is pretty good. Could've done without that last sentence though.
Was watching this video abt Garcia Marquez and little peasant children sold his books in the street. Your girlfriend should do that but with her monster tits out
>>7433580
solid post desu
