Galaxy Bookshop's Record Sales Are in the Bank

Virginia and Laura Toohey, great customers and bakers, present the chocolate raspberry anniversary cake.

The first nor'easter of the season didn't daunt New Englanders who slogged through a foot and a half of snow to help Hardwick, Vermont's Galaxy Bookshop mark its 15th anniversary on December 6. Owner Linda Ramsdell told BTW that she broke all previous sales records and sold over 400 books during the day-long party, which featured pastries and slices of a chocolate raspberry cake baked by two customers, as well as 15 percent off all book sales. Local writers, including Lewis and Nancy Hill (The Flower Gardener's Bible: Time-Tested Techniques, Creative Designs, and Perfect Plants for Colorful Gardens, Storey Books), mingled and signed books. The winner of Galaxy Bookshop's 15th anniversary essay contest, octogenarian Francis Whitcomb, was awarded a $150 Book Sense gift card (which he redeemed within the week). His winning essay was entitled "The Book Lover's Lament."

Snow arrived at the Galaxy Bookshop on the day of its 15th anniversary party.

"It all went pretty wonderfully," said Ramsdell. "Hundreds of customers braved the huge snowstorm. People came in, stomped their boots, and bought a lot of books." In a rural area like Hardwick, with a population of just over 3,000, the bookstore plays an important role as a gathering place, especially during harsh weather, when Vermonters will still venture out, but not far, Ramsdell noted.

The Galaxy Bookshop was founded in 1988 when Ramsdell graduated college and "didn't have anything else to do," she told BTW. "I was a 'woman in transition' as a friend said. Someone mentioned that Hardwick needed a bookstore and I [opened one] before I could even think about it. I thought I'd try bookselling for five or six years and then maybe figure out what I really wanted to do. It turned out this is exactly what I want to be doing."

Ramsdell originally opened Galaxy Bookshop in a 150-square-foot space within a larger consignment and antique store. It wasn't hard to fund the operation because it was so small, and it meant that any mistakes that were made could only be small, Ramsdell explained. After six months, Galaxy relocated and increased its square footage to 200, and Ramsdell advertised the new store with the un-ironic tag line: "Over 100 books available."

"When I moved I could fit everything -- merchandise, fixtures -- into the back of a pickup truck," said Ramsdell. "One of the fun things is some of my first customers were pregnant when they visited the bookstore. Now their kids are in their mid teens and are shopping here on their own."

In Galaxy's infancy, Ramsdell relied heavily on ABA and the New England Booksellers Association for advice on bookselling. "They were vast troves of information. The educational programming was where I learned about becoming a professional bookseller," Ramsdell said.

Galaxy Bookshop in Hardwick, Vermont.

Six years ago, Galaxy moved to the 1,500-square-foot brick building that now houses the bookstore. Built at the turn of the last century, it used to be the town bank and Galaxy still uses some of the bank's special features. The vault serves as the sidelines room featuring among, other things, puzzles and games, and the drive-thru still offers customer convenience. Ramsdell said, "People pull up to pick up their books from the drive-thru if it's a rainy day and they've got a lot of kids in the car."

A Book Sense store since the program's inception in '99, Galaxy keeps Book Sense bestsellers and select Book Sense 76 titles in a bookcase next to the front door. The 76 fliers are displayed on top of the bookcase, and the Book Sense map of participating bookstores hangs on the wall behind the register.

Galaxy also joined the electronic gift card program as soon as it was launched. "We signed up right away. We were the first store in Vermont to get the cards," said Ramsdell. "It was an easy transition for [customers]. I sell a few a day, I just sold three to one woman. People like the presentation of the cards, and my handwriting is really bad, so I like not having to write out a gift certificate…. We had our logo, Web address, and phone number printed on the cards."

Ramsdell's future plans include continuing to develop Galaxy's satellite store, Stardust Books, staffed by Craftsbury Academy high school students. "It's a baby bookstore," said Ramsdell. "It's 300 square feet, and this month we opened a tiny café. Coffee, tea, muffins -- that's it. Right now it's open two days a week. I want to work on making the bookstore a community gathering place as well as a bookstore. And I want to sell more books. It seems to me that the more opportunities people have to buy books, and the more convenient it is for them to buy at an independent store, the more they will do so."

About her decision to employ high school students to operate the satellite, Ramsdell explained, "I was inspired to staff Stardust with teens by my friend who had a teen-powered cafe in Baltimore. I thought kids in Craftsbury would benefit from having local job opportunities and some entrepreneurial experience and voice in shaping the store. An example of how that has played out since the store opened is that the students wanted to have a used book section. They are completely in charge of the used book section and will decide what to do with their profits." (For more on Stardust Books, click here.)

Galaxy has grown significantly since its beginnings 15 years ago, and Ramsdell appreciates some of the more recent changes. "What's been most rewarding in the last year, I've been able to have more staff and work more as a team with [staff members] Sandy Johnson and Florencio Terra," Ramsdell said. "For many years, it was just me almost all the time. Now we're able to do more in the store, host more events, and pay more attention to every aspect of what we do." --Karen Schechner