Books & Books at Levenger

In early November, Books & Books of Coral Gables and Miami Beach, Florida, opened a 1,000-square-foot store inside the Delray Beach headquarters and showroom of Levenger, Inc., a catalog and Internet seller of high-quality tools for reading and writing. To mark the event, Books & Books' owner Mitchell Kaplan and Levenger co-founder and president Steve Leveen hosted a celebratory and well-attended book signing featuring Anthony Bourdain, author of Kitchen Confidential (Ecco).

Kaplan told BTW that the new store, called Books & Books at Levenger, is doing well and that "customers are very excited by the prospect of having author readings [nearby]. We're hoping to present one or two a month."

The general bookstore offers Book Sense bestsellers and is skewed toward design and cooking titles, reflecting the interests of Levenger's customer base, said Kaplan. He added that he has long known Leveen and was "impressed" by the Levenger brand.

"It's a nice little bookstore," said Leveen, who has a book coming out this April entitled Little Guide to Your Well-Read Life (Levenger Press). He and Kaplan thought to join forces after Levenger opened small stores within two Marshall Field's department stores in Chicago. "The whole concept of joining brands has proven successful," said Leveen. "Why not have a Books & Books inside Levenger?" He added that Kaplan has brought many authors to Miami and can now also bring author events to Palm Beach County.

Leveen said that having a Books & Books within Levenger was a welcome boon to the business since Levenger is a destination store, located in an industrial area. The store within a store provides significant incentive. "It works perfectly for us to have a prominent independent bookstore where customers can browse and linger," said Leveen. "It's a natural fit. We're very enthusiastic about it." --Karen Schechner