Buffalo Street Books plans to shift towards a nonprofit model after low-profit margins put a financial strain on the local bookstore. Community support has raised over $55,000 for Buffalo Street Books to sustain operations as they transition to a nonprofit format.
Buffalo Street Books has been located on the street of its namesake since 2011 and is currently cooperatively owned, meaning members own and run the business and share benefits and decision-making powers.
According to an October email obtained by The Sun from Buffalo Street Books, very low sales at the beginning of the year have left the business “in danger of having to close if [they] don’t raise the needed funds,” and announced their fundraising campaign process and plans to alter the business model from a co-op to a non-profit.
The bookstore’s general manager Liza Swayze said that becoming a nonprofit is advantageous for the bookstore because it both opens the door for more funding from grants and more closely fits the community-oriented purpose of the store.
“Being a nonprofit model better fits what we actually do, which is a lot of community service,” Swayze said. “[We also] hope that through some grants and other opportunities that are only available to nonprofits will be able to fill that difficult niche, that difficult missing dollar amount that has always made it hard to survive.”
Swayze said that through fundraising efforts, Buffalo Street Books has raised about $55,000, currently falling short of the store’s goal of $100,000 by the end of the year.
Buffalo Street Books raises money through its membership program. Members can pay $10 for a monthly membership or $100 for an annual membership that gives them a five percent discount on all purchased books.
The bookstore has also planned fundraising events, such as a ticketed Books, Bread, & Wine event on Dec. 8 that will feature local writers.
“We’ve had a couple of larger donations, but also just so many people willing to help have the bookstore survive to transform into this new nonprofit,” Swayze said.
Swayze said that it is difficult for bookstores to make a profit selling new books. According to Swayze, larger corporations such as Amazon take up a big portion of the bookselling market. She also said brick-and-mortar bookstores lose business to Amazon because it is able to offer large discounts, since the corporation’s profits do not solely rely on book sales.
Swayze said Buffalo Street Books’ community involvement has translated to the support they have received throughout their transition.
“We host [events] every year that are mostly free for people to attend and meet authors and learn about books and hear readings,” Swayze said. “[We] work in partnership with so many local organizations and schools and libraries to help them order books at discounts and get those books into the hands of kids.”
Nonprofit status would allow Buffalo Street Books to take in work-study students, which Swayze said she was excited for.
“Working in a bookstore will be a really nice opportunity for any student who’s interested in writing or publishing to immerse themselves in the local literary landscape and also to learn about the ways that in the bookstores interact with authors and publishers,” Swayze said.
Reflecting on the transition, Swayze said, “I don’t think the indie bookstores are going anywhere soon.”
“People often talk about bookstores as those kind[s] of vital third spaces where you can hang out and be together, … and you have connection to the people around you and conversations. So that’s a piece of it,” Swayze said. “The other piece is just the energy that goes into cultivating connections with our community.”