Former literary agent, WME executive and events entrepreneur Jennifer Rudolph Walsh has opened the Godmothers bookstore in Summerland, CA in partnership with cosmetics entrepreneur Victoria Jackson. Saturday’s grand opening included an appearance by local resident Meghan Markle. Last week, Jackson published WE ALL WORRY, NOW WHAT? through Melcher Media.
Bookstores
Bookshop UK Launches Buyback Program
Bookshop.org in the UK has launched Bookloop, a program allowing customers to trade in used books for store credit. Customers can either leave books at a drop-off point or have them picked up at home. Bookshop will continue to only sell new books, but will trade the books to Zeercle, the company that also operates WH Smith’s buyback program. Distinct from the WH Smith program, Zeercle will not sell the used Bookshop books through Amazon-owned sites. Books are valued via an online calculator and customers must sell £5 worth of books to participate. The Guardian calculates that recent titles Prophet […]
German Bookseller Weltbild Will Close
With no buyer to be found, German bookseller Weltbild will close its 14 remaining stores by the end of August and liquidate. Most of the approximately 440 employees will lose their jobs. But Augsburger Allgemeine reports that the country’s leading bookseller Thalia is interested in acquiring assets from the bankruptcy estate — including inventory, trademark rights and the Tolino ereader and ebook business. Thalia has submitted an application to the Federal Cartel Office regarding its purchase interest.
Court Approves BN’s Purchase of Tattered Cover
A bankruptcy court approved Barnes & Noble’s purchase of Tattered Cover for $1.83 million. The chain will take over all of Tattered Cover’s locations and inventory, and keep the Tattered Cover name and staff. BN notes that teams “are working this week to transition to new systems to allow the ordering of books for the stores. Some of this transition may briefly affect store hours and service, and there will be a period of interruption online to tatteredcover.com.”
East Bay Booksellers “A Total Loss” After Fire
East Bay Booksellers in Oakland, CA was destroyed in a three-alarm fire on Tuesday. The fire started at 5:25 AM, though the cause and where it started are under investigation. In a video posted to Instagram, owner Brad Johnson said that the building was still standing but the store is “gutted” and neighbors were displaced. “Business has effectively been shut down,” Johnson said, but the store can process online orders for shipping and gift card purchases. A GoFundMe has been set up to help rebuild the store. The fundraiser has a goal of $200,000, with more than $36,000 raised in […]
Bookselling: New Owners for Diesel In Brentwood
Alison Reid and John Evans announced on the Diesel bookstore website that they have sold their store in Brentwood after a lengthy search. Richard and Heather Turner take over ownership on August 1. Reid and Evans “will be on hand for a few more months to smooth the transition.” They add: “We are so excited to work to help them keep the store as good as you’ve come to expect and to take it forward into the future. All of your favorite booksellers will be continuing to work in the store.”