I went to a local bookstore in my town a couple months ago (that I have gone to many times before). It actually has a decent selection. I usually browse the classic science fiction section, although I do occasionally detour to the classics section or find some postmodernist authors. I went 1.5 hours before closing and it was way busier than normal. I realized soon that there was higher foot traffic than normal because of the 'no kings' protest that was going on downtown. Normally this place is a ghost town with 1-2 people in it. Yet, I heard the owner say to someone they wanted to shut the store down an hour early to join the protest. I thought he just meant it in a 'yeah, wish I could, but I gotta do my job type of thing". Then, 1 hour before the real closing time, I realized I was the only one in the store left and he was starting to close windows and doors. I hurried out quickly after, and then he locked the door behind me.I didn't really care that the owner kinda pushed me out or that he has bad politics. What I was surprised by was that this seemed like one of his best days of the year to stay open and actually make money, but he closed it down!I don't know how he stays open with his normal 1-2 customers walking in, browsing, and leaving with nothing most hours of the day. Are book stores a money laundering front? Is it just what some loaded boomer does as a day hobby, and he only hopes that he breaks even?
>>24951970>Is it just what some loaded boomer does as a day hobbyIt's this. A local independent bookstore makes no money. A lot of them cheat to stay afloat by offering trade (getting inventory for free).
>>24951970What if he was worried they were going to go ape and riot and trash the store?
>>24951970Independent bookstores that only offer new books are the worst of the worst petit bourgeois would-be-hitlerites ever. I'm not paying some libtard $10 more for a book I could get on amazon. Their entire business model is hoping tourists and rich liberals will "support local businesses" because uhh you just should okThey all need to go out of business ASAP. Crush them.
>>24951970The thing is that despite bootok, there was probably more of a customer base for independent bookstores during the hipster era. Granted, that's still also around the time Borders went out of business. But as far as proximity to hipster enclaves, like Wicker Park in Chicago, or Portland, go, you had a more literate public where older books were valuable commodities and status symbols to rely upon. With zoomers, that now doesn't exist whatsoever. So business has slowed considerably.
