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| Manager Clarissa Murphy (l.) and owner Barbara Clarke at Parkside Bookshop. | |
Roughly three years after buying Provincetown Bookshop in Provincetown, Mass., investor and entrepreneur Barbara Clarke is opening Parkside Bookshop in Boston's South End neighborhood. Clarke has hired veteran bookseller Clarissa Murphy to manage the store, and the pair hope to have the doors open at 260 Shawmut Ave. in late summer or early fall.
The general-interest bookstore will have 950 square feet of retail space along with a basement storage area totaling about 400 square feet. The inventory will consist of mainly new titles with a selection of remainders and span a wide range of genres and age groups.
There will be a healthy children's section, with Murphy pointing out that there are plenty of children and young families in the area, as well as a deep nonfiction section, due to the number of universities and academics nearby. Clarke mentioned that mystery readers are common in the neighborhood, and the plan is to make sure that regardless of taste, "people feel comfortable coming in here no matter what they want to buy."
Murphy remarked that the selection of remainders is another part of their plan to make the store accessible to everybody: "Whoever wants to come through the door, we should have something for them."
"We want to make our community happy," said Clarke, noting that the South End "could really use" a traditional bookstore. "Everything we talk about is rooted in community," added Murphy.
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The pair has also committed to being open seven days per week, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. They envision customers coming in to browse the bookstore while waiting for a table at one of the many restaurants in the area, and with many people in the neighborhood working from home, they hope they'll stop in during lunch breaks or while getting coffee in the morning.
Among its nonbook offerings, Parkside Bookshop will carry vinyl records, greeting cards, and store-branded tote bags. Given that the neighborhood recently lost an art supply store, there will be an ample selection of art supplies, and for children, there will be items like stuffed animals and plushies.
Elaborating on the store's name, Clarke said it refers to the large number of parks dotted around the South End and is meant to evoke the feeling of sitting in a park with a book: "What could be more relaxing and enjoyable?"
Asked about events, Clarke said they have a lot of ideas in the works, including but not limited to traditional author events. The South End is a multilingual community, and they plan to host children's story hours in "as many languages as we can do." The neighborhood is well known for its food scene, and partnerships with restaurants and eateries are in the works. In fact, one of the shop's first events will be all about food.
On the topic of an eventual grand opening, Clarke figures that because the store has "so many constituencies," there will likely be a series of opening events, such as a friends-and-family night, an industry night, and a celebration with members of the South End Business Alliance, before celebrating with the wider community.
Parkside Bookshop will have a close relationship with its counterpart on Cape Cod. As Clarke and Murphy add booksellers to their team, staff will go to Provincetown Bookshop to train, and Provincetown staff will help out with Parkside's launch. Staff picks from Provincetown will be featured at Parkside, and Clarke observed that there is a lot of overlap between the two stores' customer bases.
Clarke noted that Provincetown Bookshop is a highly seasonal business, with things slowing down quite a bit in the off-season and the store usually closing for about four weeks every winter. Clarke thought it would be a great idea "to bring something to Boston which doesn't have the seasonality," and allows for collaboration "with all the talented people we have in Provincetown."
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| Parkside's newly installed conveyor belt. | |
While discussing the store's location, Clarke recalled that the space appeared on her radar more than a year ago, but the sales process was a "long, protracted" one. Once it changed hands, the space needed some significant work, and because the shop is in an historic district, things slowed a bit further. Renovations included the installation of an HVAC system as well as a conveyor belt located behind the counter that will allow staff to easily send books down to the basement storage area. That addition, Clarke noted, was inspired in part by McNally Jackson Books in New York City.
The South End community, Clarke and Murphy reported, has been extremely enthusiastic. Particularly when construction was going on and the doors were open more often, people were "always poking their heads in" to say hi and ask about the store.
"It couldn't be a more supportive and excited community," said Murphy. "That goes for the other businesses on the street as well."
"They are ecstatic," said Clarke. "Everyone is really excited about it." --Alex Mutter