Books for sale

May 24, 2005


I’ve had these revelations lately that I need to become some sort of small business entrepreneur. It’s not a new idea, but it’s certainly never been this strong, this persistent. This time it’s a book store – a real independent book store that, in my mind, will grow exponentially until it’s bigger than Powell’s, bigger than Barnes and Noble, and, of course, no longer be independent.

I’m not so sure how possible it is. I’ve always been afraid of failing, as many people are, and I’d be horribly anxious about how things would turn out. I’d micromanage too much. I’d worry for weeks about the smallest problems, and I’d end up being a complete burden on anyone who worked for me.

My idea isn’t original – there are at least ten people in every city who think about opening an independent bookstore. I don’t have any breakthrough suggestions, nothing that would separate my bookstore from any other, but I’d love to give it a shot.

How hard would that be though? A first time business owner who would overreact to every bump and who was afraid of failure? Someone who freaks out when their lawn has yellow spots after only one week of summer?

Kerrie and I have talked about this before, except with a different idea. Our concept, dreamed up at the Crocodile in Seattle, was to move into a two level building in some downtown city, living in the loft upstairs while we ran a vegetarian restaurant/bar on the first level — C & K’s Pub-O-Rama. We drew up the plan on a napkin and everything:

Pub O Rama

It was a grand dream, but impossible to do without a large lump of capital and the right location. Of course, I’d be too afraid to do it anyway.

However, I’m warming more and more to the idea of finally taking some sort of chance with my life – to get the money together and rent out a space downtown where I could sell books.

If I failed, I would at least be able to say “yes, I owned a bookstore once.”

Tags: Creating a Bookstore |

Comments

4 Responses to “Books for sale”

  1. Roberta on May 24th, 2005 1023 pm

    you could burden me. i would help you with this dream because it is my dream to hold many part-time jobs that still do not add up to paying my mortgage or taking vacations. go for it corey. my starting wage is 6 dollars though. do you need a full resume and references for a sales position? i used to work at the buckle selling lucky jeans and dr. martens…i could sell books. go for it

  2. Corey Vilhauer on May 25th, 2005 123 am

    Ha! Unfortunately, I don’t think we’d be big enough to institute any “Vilhauer Book Store” challenge — where you’d have to make it back to the Western History section and back without having the clerk look up from his or her book.

    Go ahead and send a resume, though. If I don’t start the business, you could always apply at Relay.

  3. cr00kedview on May 25th, 2005 255 am

    Hey, I’d do the website for 5 cookies/day.

  4. black marks on wood pulp » Taking the plunge, soon on December 22nd, 2005 113 pm

    [...] Months ago I mentioned half-heartedly that I wanted to start a small business – my own independent bookstore. I thought about long and hard about it, blogged about it, and then promptly forgot about it. [...]

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