Brain Lair Books, South Bend, Ind., issued a challenge to its supporters last week in a social media post: "This is our final plea. We are just $25,000 short of meeting our obligations this month, and without immediate help from you, Brain Lair Books will close its doors on October 31st."
Owner Kathy Burnette noted that the bookstore needs to sell 5,682 books from its in-stock inventory to make it through this month. "We’re asking you, our community, to come together and help us reach this target. Whether it’s through a purchase or spreading the word to others, we can’t do this without you," she wrote.
Burnette added that the Brain Lair Books team has been working hard to reshape the store into a true community hub: rearranging the space to make room for offerings like book-themed craft nights, puzzle contests, community game nights, a trivia night to kick off the holiday season, and story times in December for the youngest readers. Three new book clubs have also been added.
"We’ve decided not to sell the store because protecting your information and our relationship with this community is more important than anything," Burnette wrote. "We believe in the power of what we’ve built together, but now we need your support to keep it alive. This is the last chance to help Brain Lair Books continue as the place where stories, connection, and underrepresented voices thrive."
"Whichever way it went I was going with that... if it didn't work, closing was October 31," Burnette told WSBT. "My staff and I already talked about it so we already knew all of this was happening. It was just a matter of let's tell the community and see what happens."
The community has reacted quickly to the news, and Burnette said she has been overwhelmed with all of the support from them and from people across the country: "Then Saturday was insane.... From the moment we opened to the moment we closed which even after we closed I had people knocking on the door, but we did more on Saturday than we do for an entire month, more than an entire month."