Canadian chain unveils first concept store in Toronto; Texas indie author preps his big store opening; and more.
Indigo Opens First New Concept Store: On Tuesday, Heather Reisman, head of the Canadian bookstore chain, opened a 33,000 sq. ft. store in Toronto, the first of what she said will be six or seven big stores that are part of Indigo’s vision for a bookstore as “cultural department store.” The space is divided into mini boutiques.
The Last Word Bookstore Opening Tomorrow: After having his job outsourced to India, Paul Combs decided to start over and open a bookstore in the New Southside neighborhood in Ft. Worth, Tex. He raised $9,000 through a GoFundMe campaign, for a 2,700 sq. ft. bookstore in a former beauty parlor. An indie author himself (The Last Word), Combs will offer indie books on consignment along with other titles, primarily fiction and local books. He plans to add a small art gallery in the store’s alcove.
Half Price Opens Store in Marietta: The independent used and new bookstore chain is making its first foray into Georgia with the opening of a 9,000 sq. ft. store today, its 127th. It will open its second Georgia bookstore in Decatur around Labor Day.
New Name & Location for McGill Bookstore: The McGill University bookstore in Montreal, Canada, is completing its name change to Bookstore/Librairie Le James after the stores founder and separating into an academic bookstore and a lifestyle store. To make sure that it serves the changing needs of the campus and offers books in any format students want, the store is revamping its web presence and adding a pop-up store that will operate on different parts of the downtown campus.
