OH WHAT HAVE I DONE ?
Friends, family, general public, and all who care,
I have insane news to share with you that's been brewing for the last few months. The short and short of it is I AM NOW A BUSINESS OWNER.
*this is the first draft of a design for the shop by the brilliant Maria Iqbal!*
The long of it is...remember how Irvington Vinyl closed? Well, in late February I visited this space for the first time. Being a relative newcomer to Indianapolis I'd yet to investigate our city's offerings in the realm of used books and records. Besides, I work next door to Square Cat Vinyl in Fountain Square; not to mention, I haven't avidly collected records outside of new releases since college. I just haven't had time--and I've been a bit nomadic. It's hard to bring a collection with you when you're constantly going from city to city.
Anyways, when my sweet bf brought me there for the first time I fell in love instantly. It smells exactly how a used book and record store is supposed to smell. It's in a building from the 1920's, has gorgeous original wood floors, opulent high ceilings, and the dust of ages. You can imagine my surprise when I found out only a few days later that the shop was closing. I happened to be doing my daily writing work at Square Cat when I mentioned my trip to a dear friend, Kelsey Simpson, founder of Gluestick Festival. Being friends with the owner, Kelsey knew a bit more about the situation than I did and encouraged me to reach out.
At that time, I had no way or even idea to intervene. I just love a bit of hot gossip and I wanted to hear more about why a shop I thought was doing very well had decided to up and shut its doors. But, just before my meeting with Rick, I found myself in an intriguing conversation with my friend, Jess Hemesath (aka DJ Littletown) and my bf (Drake Strange, also a DJ). Per usual, I'd shared my snippet of gossip over lunch and beers and Jess' response was simply and charmingly, "What if we could save it?"
I've told her this and I'll tell you, it's because of her hopeful turn of phrase, the magic of a brief dream that I started to dig in my heels. From there I did my due diligence, researched, wrote a business plan, and collected the information I'd need. In the course of a two month long escapade I was finally able to purchase Irvington Vinyl and Bookmamas--you'll be able to read more about this whole journey in an upcoming story from our beloved NUVO. All this being said, I'M SO EXCITED and really really grateful to those of you who've helped and encouraged me. Rick, Kathleen, Drake, Kelsey, Michelle, Drew, Jess, Will, Leah, Roelf, my family, and many others--I wouldn't be able to do this without your graciousness!
To speak briefly on the aesthetic and vision of the shop--we'll be working closely with the original owners, Rick and Kathleen, to ensure that everyone who's felt supported by this establishment in the past continues to feel that way. I've taken it upon myself to purchase Rick's personal collection of vinyl to give us a great sample of what's been in and out of the shop along with Irvington Vintage and Missing Link, Rick's two other stores before Irvington Vinyl.
In regards to Bookmamas, while I'll be offering a lot of similar inventory, we'll also be focused on bringing in collectible vintage books, occult books, zines, comics, and small press poetry/prose from living writers both on a local and national level. I'll also be hosting events supporting the local community, specifically book clubs, readings, and open mics.
This is all I can tell you for now! Feel free to follow us on FB for updates! & Look out in June for our doors to reopen!
