Starting this weekend, Cottonwood Books in Baton Rouge, La., will be open only two days per week as owners Danny and Nancy Plaisance prepare to close the store permanently. Nancy Plaisance told the Advocate she is unsure exactly when the store's last day of business will be, but they are trying to liquidate the store's inventory.
The couple put the store up for sale in 2021 after Danny Plaisance was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Though they found a potential buyer for the store, the deal fell through due to issues related to securing financing. She noted that there has been a lot of interest, but many prospective buyers want to purchase the whole building, which is a nonstarter.
"Our hope was to keep it as a bookstore," Nancy Plaisance said. "That's what we wanted for the community, and that's what the landlord wanted as well."
Founded in 1978 as Taliesen's, the business changed hands and was renamed Cottonwood Books in 1982. Danny Plaisance left a dissatisfying career as a paper salesman to take over the business in September 1986. Under his ownership the store's inventory grew from around 5,000 books to 45,000.
The couple told the Advocate that they are still open to offers from potential buyers.