Around Indies

Interabang Books Opens in Dallas

Dallas, Texas’ new independent bookstore, Interabang Books, opened for business on July 1, and a grand opening celebration is planned for September 11.

The full-service, independent bookstore features more than 9,000 titles and has a special focus on fiction, children’s books, and creative nonfiction. The store is co-owned by former Brazos Bookstore manager and BookPeople marketing director Jeremy Ellis; Nancy Perot, the daughter of 1992 presidential candidate Ross Perot; and literary magazine editor Lori Feathers.

Zenith Bookstore Opens in Duluth

Bob and Angel Dobrow opened Zenith Bookstore in Duluth, Minnesota, on July 1, reported the Duluth News Tribune.

The bookstore’s façade features a mural of books, created by local artist Tom Napoli. “People have been coming by all the time and getting pictures of it with their kids,” Bob Dobrow said.

The store features a variety of new books, including a section for Minnesota authors, as well as a selection of used books. Customers can sell used books to the store, although the bar for what the store will take is set high, said Bob Dobrow. Zenith has also partnered with Libro.fm for the sale of audiobooks.

The Booksmith Debuts The Bindery

On July 4, San Francisco’s The Booksmith opened a new 2,800-square-foot satellite space, The Bindery, which features a dedicated events parlor and a full-service bookstore.

The Bookstore features the Arcana Project, described by the Booksmith as “a deep, highly inclusive array of books — fiction and nonfiction, from all over the world — presented in chronological order by the date they were written.” The project adds 10,000 titles to the Booksmith’s existing inventory.

The events parlor includes a wine and beer bar as well as a full-service café; the space is available to rent for all types of events.

Duende District to Pop Up in Coffee Bar

La Mano Coffee Bar, located in Washington, D.C.’s Takoma Park neighborhood, will host Duende District bookstore’s pop-up shop from July 11 to 23, reported Washington City Paper.

Duende District, a mobile bookstore founded by former Politics & Prose staffer Angela Maria Spring, aims to highlight books written by authors of color and connect with an audience of people of color, though all are welcome. The pop-up shop will feature books for adults and children.

Spring told Washington City Paper that she is testing the bookstore via pop-up shops in several communities to determine where to open a brick-and-mortar location.

Inkwood Books on the Move

Inkwood Books, located in Tampa, Florida’s Hyde Park neighborhood for the past 26 years, is moving to Tampa Heights, reported the Tampa Bay Times. The move will nearly double the store’s bookselling space and allow for more book signings and other events.

Owner Stefani Beddingfield, who said on June 30 that she had yet to sign the lease, told the Tampa Bay Times she is excited about the new location, which is across the street from a restaurant cooperative and near a coffee shop. “People can walk across the street for a cocktail, or have coffee and then come to a book signing,” Beddingfield said.

Beddingfield plans to open the new shop before closing the old store, she said, so for a brief period there will be two Inkwood Books in Tampa. The Tampa Heights store will be fully open January 15.

Tattered Cover Ownership Transition Complete

As of Saturday, July 1, Len Vlahos and Kristen Gilligan are the official owners of Tattered Cover Book Store in Denver, Colorado, marking the end of a two-year transition to take controlling interest from retiring longtime owner Joyce Meskis.

“The transition has been so good and so fluid that it’s a little anticlimactic,” Vlahos told the Denver Post. “But this is what we’ve been working toward. This is why we came here. We’re excited.”

A few changes are in store for Tattered Cover, including a revamp of the store’s website and the addition of some after-hours events for adults. Already in place is a new computer system, a partnership with audiobook platform Libro.fm, and an overhaul of the stores’ coffee bars.

Tubby & Coo’s Launches Publishing Arm

New Orleans bookstore Tubby & Coo’s Mid-City Book Shop has announced the launch of a new publishing venture, which is currently raising funds to publish three books: Captain, a fantasy adventure/fairy tale by Artie Sievers; The Two Stegosauruses by Daniel Moore Glaser, a love story for adults told in the format of a children’s book; and Alligator, Bayou, Crawfish, a New Orleans ABC book by Ali Becnel Solino.

According to Tubby & Coo’s, the goal of the publishing imprint is to give a voice and platform to independent authors. As part of the program, authors will keep the rights to their own work, but Tubby & Coo’s uses some of the profits to help with production, marketing, distribution, and other elements of the process.