Bookseller Finds the Right Mix for St. Louis Suburb

When Nikki Furrer majored in English as an undergraduate, her intention was to one day be surrounded by books. Since October 2008, she has been living her dream as the founder/owner of Pudd’nhead Books in Webster Groves, Missouri. Despite being warned by her father that operating a bookstore is “90 percent running a business and 10 percent books,” Furrer persevered. While working in publishing, she said, she became acquainted with booksellers and realized that it was possible for a book lover to succeed as a bookstore owner.

Furrer originally planned to open her store in Brooklyn, New York, where she was living at the time, but she eventually went back to her roots, in her native Missouri. “I understand these people,” she said. “I see their perspective and I know what’s important to them so it’s easier for me to buy the right books.”

Pudd’nhead Books is known for hosting a full calendar of events (the store hosted 30 authors this fall), and Furrer will share her knowledge and experiences with other booksellers as a panelist at the Winter Institute’s “Creating Killer Events” session in January in Washington, D.C. The store also hosts a number of book clubs, and Furrer said that she often looks forward to “cracking open a bottle of Yellowtail, a box of chocolates, and talking about what we like.” The store also features a coffee bar serving espresso, cappuccinos, lattes, and other specialty drinks, as well as tea and coffee.

In 1,500 square feet of selling space, Puddn’head hosts events for up to 50 people. Book fairs and book release parties for children and young adult books are usually held at an outside venue, such as the St. Louis County Library, the local museum, or farmer’s market.

“We team up with other people in the area, so instead of competing with each other, we both benefit. We definitely get a broader reach by doing it this way,” Furrer said.

To publicize store events, Furrer does the “usual round” of online marketing, using the store’s Facebook and Twitter accounts, as well as updating the community events calendar. Among last week’s promotions via the Pudd’nhead Facebook wall were a Thanksgiving book drive for the troops overseas (“Do something sweet for the people who protect us AND cross some names off your shopping list”) and an Educator Night (“Melissa [Posten, children’s and young adult buyer] is doing book talks, we’ve got boxes and boxes of free stuff to give away, and 20% off your entire purchase tonight.”)

Since opening two years ago, Furrer has established good relationships with several of the area’s media outlets, and all of them cover happenings within the store. In 2010, Pudd’nhead Books was named to the “Best of” lists of both the Riverfront Times and KTVI, the St. Louis Fox television affiliate.

“It’s been going really well,” Furrer said. “I definitely have to load my car a lot. We sell books all over the place.”