Foxes & Fireflies Booksellers will open this year in Superior, Wis., Perfect Duluth Day reported.
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| Foxes and Fireflies in progress. | |
The general-interest bookstore will sell new titles and reside within a business incubator called the Superior Entrepreneurship Center. The incubator is located at 1401 Tower Ave., in an historic building that was once the town's post office. Initially the store will be open only on weekends, but owner Maria Lockwood intends to expand hours if there is enough support.
Lockwood, who works as a reporter at the Superior Telegram, told Perfect Duluth Day that she wants the bookstore to become a third space and community hub: "I want kids to come after school to do their homework, or to start an art club, or come have their own book club, maybe a knitting group wants to come, get out of the house and be someplace."
Superior has been without a bookstore selling new titles since 2007, when JW Beecroft closed, and Lockwood became dissatisfied after waiting 17 years for a new one to open. "It's here and it's for the community. It's not my bookstore, it's Superior's bookstore. And I really want Superior to own that. And they can only do that if they come and tell me what they want and they support us."
To help launch the bookstore, Lockwood made use of a Kiva loan, which involves both private fundraising and open crowdfunding. Lockwood began by securing 15 lenders to give at least $25. Then the crowdfunding phase opened, and Lockwood reached her goal of $8,500 within a week.
While Lockwood has not announced a definite opening date for Foxes & Fireflies, she has already started hosting some events around town, including silent book clubs at local parks.