Book Shop of Beverly Farms in Beverly, Mass., has been sold to Hannah Harlow, executive director of marketing of general interest books at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Harlow is buying the store together with Sam Pfeifle, her brother; she will manage day-to-day operations, while he will be responsible for marketing and digital initiatives. The sale closes January 24, the same day Harlow will leave HMH for her new role.
“I’m moving from one dream job to another,” said Harlow. “Opening a bookstore never seemed feasible on my own, until I saw the Book Shop for sale just a couple towns over from where I live [in Ipswich], and then talked to my brother and we realized we were in
a position to do this together."
The bookstore has been opened since 1968 and has changed hands twice before, making Harlow and Pfeifle the fourth owners. Plans for the store include adding more events, story hours, school fairs, literary-themed dinner nights, and a book mobile.
The store will be closed for a week following the transition and will have a soft launch on February 3.
