130-year-old bookstore in California seeks buyer
Dawn Levesque, 77, will learn about World War II. Heidi Barnett, 43, mother of two, comes to buy presents for her children. Justin Beblawi, 25, has been coming there since he was a child and now works there as a clerk.
For people of all ages in Pasadena, California, Vroman's Bookstore, founded in 1894, is a mainstay, a meeting place, a reliable refuge in a world of rapid change. When the founder, Adam Clark Vroman, died in 1916, he left the bookstore to his godson, Alan Sheldon, an employee of Vroman.
Current chairman and majority owner, Joel Sheldon III, 79, is the third generation of his family to lead the company and has been at the helm for more than 45 years.
As Vroman's prepares to celebrate its 130th anniversary, Sheldon has decided it is time to hand over the reins.
However, he doesn't just want to sell to the highest bidder. Sheldon wants to leave the bookstore in good hands.
“Vroman's deserves new ownership with the vision, energy and dedication needed to successfully take it into the future,” Sheldon said in a Instagram post announced its decision last month.
He continued, “We will take the time necessary to find the right new owner – someone who shares our core values and is committed to preserving Vroman's as a community treasure.”
Over the years, the bookstore has hosted authors including Upton Sinclair, Ray Bradbury, Ginger Rogers, Joan Didion, Hillary Clinton and Judge Sonia Sotomayor. It was mentioned in 2008 Bookseller of the Year from Publishers Weekly.
“We have generations of customers,” says Sherri Gallentine, who started working at Vroman as a clerk in 1992 and became head book buyer in 2010. “We have people who come in and say, 'I came here when I was a kid with my grandparents, and now I bring my kids here.'”
The store is a place of pride for the people of Pasadena, said Philip Hawkey, a former city manager. “Vroman reflects much of Pasadena's civic identity,” he said.
The store, said to be the largest independent bookstore in Southern California, has two locations in Pasadena, two boutiques at LAX airport and an e-commerce site. The main Pasadena location, on Colorado Boulevard, also has a coffee shop, wine bar and a large room for reading books. In 2009, Vroman's purchased independent bookstore Book Soup in West Hollywood after the owner died and the store was in danger of closing.
The stores are doing their best to curate their selections, with sections like “California and the West” and “Black Lives,” and to prioritize customer service. One of the 150 employees often walks with customers to the shelves to help them find the books they are looking for.
That personal approach helped Vroman's survive the competition from major supermarkets and online retailers.
“We have people who can help you pick out gifts for your family or just something nice for yourself,” says Gallentine. “We try to connect with our customers.”
In an interview, Sheldon said he is confident the right steward for Vroman is out there somewhere: “We're confident we can find someone.”
Still, Vroman's loyal customers are concerned that the bookstore will change – or worse: it will not find a buyer and will have to close. “Everyone's talking about it,” Barnett said.
On a recent weekday morning, Barnett was browsing upstairs in the children's section with her daughter Liza, who had just turned eight and was planning to spend her birthday money (her mother tried to steer her toward the books and away from a stuffed bunny).
“Reading is so important to our family,” Barnett said, and “by bringing them here I instill a love of books.”
Nearly 40 percent of Vroman's sales come from merchandise other than books, including gifts, kitchenware, greeting cards and stationery. It would be fine if a new owner chose to lean more in that direction, Sheldon said: “Adaptability and resilience have allowed a good owner to run a great bookstore.”
Katie Wengert, who recently visited Vroman's from Philadelphia, had her arms full of goodies, including a novel (“The Idiot” by Elif Batuman), gifts for her boyfriend who is turning 40, and a birthday card for her sister. in law.
“It's everything you want a bookstore to be,” she said. “That actually no longer exists.”
Residents have reason to be optimistic that someone will continue Vroman's tradition. The bookstore struggled during the pandemic lockdown, and the community took action in response to Sheldon's plea for support on social media.
“We've definitely been through world wars and depressions,” Sheldon said. “With our customer base and our hardworking employees and friends, we got through it and came out the other side.”
On a recent visit, Levesque, a regular, ordered a book on re-cooking leftovers, bought a planner (at 50 percent off) and browsed the travel and history sections.
Her three children always give her gift cards to the store, she said. They also know about her dying wish.
“I've already told them: when I come over, I have to cremate myself and scatter my ashes in Vroman's Bookstore,” she said. “A little bit here and there, because that's where I want to end up.”