The Children's Bookstore, Baltimore, Md., will close July 25 after more than four decades in business. Owner Melissa Doty cited "unforeseen medical issues" as the reason for the decision, which she shared "with a mixture of pride and sadness," adding: "It has been a wonderful 43 years! We want to thank all of the customers, friends, and children we've had the honor and privilege to serve. The Children's Bookstore is extremely thankful to have moved its location to Lauraville, the neighborhood where all employees currently call home. Thank you so much for your support!"
Doty, who bought the store three years ago from founder JoAnn Fruchtman, told Baltimore Fishbowl she is scheduled to have an operation later this month and no one on the staff was in a position to take over and keep it going in her absence.
"Honestly, 43 years... is a very good run for an independent bookstore," she observed. "I've been doing this since the mid-1990s and a lot of the independents from when I started are gone. A lot of big chains are gone."
The current Harford Road address is the bookstore's fourth location. Doty, who worked with Fruchtman for about 15 years before buying the store, said she transferred ownership of the business and contents to Samuel Polakoff, the developer behind SoHa Row and landlord of the building the store is in, Baltimore Fishbowl wrote.
Although people had contacted her about buying the store, Doty said she didn't feel comfortable: "I don't want to hand the bookstore over to someone I don't know."
She added that the business has developed a reputation for selling high-quality children's books and she trusts Polakoff to respect that, whatever he does, noting: "I want to honor JoAnn's legacy. I trust Sam. I know he'll do the right thing."