After 30 years of ownership, Karen and Robert Moore are selling Oregon Books and Games, Grants Pass, Ore., to three employees. The Moores had put the store up for sale more than a year ago, and several interested parties were doing due diligence later in the year--and all agreed to wait until 2020 to continue the process. As the Moores wrote in announcing the sale, "And we all know what happened then."
The three new owners are Chris Nelson, Sarah Wager and Linda Holt. Wager and Nelson will be managing the store, and Holt will continue as the senior buyer, applying 15 years of experience to picking the right books for "our unique market and its special customers." The Moores will continue at the store the next couple of years to make sure the transition goes smoothly.
The Moores said that the new owners "have risen to the challenges of keeping a business going under Covid-19. In March, Robert and Linda were declared 'at risk' and they began working from home, leaving much of the day-to-day operation to Chris and Sarah. Despite these setbacks, the store remained open with restrictions and survived."
Linda Holt joined the store in March 2005, and came with "a love of books, a great personality that everyone loved and some great retail experience, not to mention her years in the U.S. Navy," the Moores wrote. "Linda has been the favorite go-to person for hundreds of our customers and newer employees."
Sarah Wager, a graduate of George Fox University with a major in English literature, began working at the store in July 2018. "Her love of books and writing has driven her over the years to keep working on that great novel (which she keeps hidden). As former co-chair of Southern Oregon's chapter of Willamette Writers, Sarah keeps in touch with many or Oregon's writers and has been the representative of Oregon Books to all the local authors and events manager for the store."
Chris Nelson, a graduate of Grand Canyon University with a major in theology and emphasis on project management, joined the store in January 2019. "With that clean cut young look at over six feet, Chris can reach the top shelves, and has developed a keen sense of purchasing used books, as well as working to expand the store's on-line sales, which have increased substantially with Covid-19. He plans to continue his education in business, working towards an MBA."
Robert and Karen Moore added that they are "excited to see their dream of a community bookstore grow into a new adventure. They look forward to guiding the new ownership and helping the bookstore continue to thrive."