Five months after Dionne Sims announced that Black Garnet Books, the first Black woman–owned brick-and-mortar bookstore in Minnesota, was for sale, the St. Paul indie has changed hands from Sims to another Black woman, who asked not to be identified yet.
The new owner describes herself as a “proud Black queer woman” and says she uses creativity as a tool in her social justice advocacy and community organizing efforts. She has lived in Minnesota for eight years and currently is an associate professor at the University of Minnesota. She will introduce herself to store customers and other supporters at an open house event to be held at Black Garnet, located in St. Paul’s Midway neighborhood, on Thursday, November 21, from 3-5 p.m. The open house will include presentations by Sims and city representatives as well as the new owner.
Sims quit her corporate job in July 2020 to launch Black Garnet, two months after George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis. Black Garnet initially was a pop-up to sell books by BIPOC authors but switched to a brick-and-mortar model two years ago, when Sims received a $100,000 matching grant from the City of St. Paul after she’d raised $113,900 through a GoFundMe campaign. While it has expanded its inventory since opening its storefront, its focus remains on BIPOC authors.
Sims announced in June of this year that she had decided to sell the store and return to school to earn an MFA. “I’ve always loved to write, both personally and professionally,” she explained on social media. “I do it every day and I want to go back to school to take my craft to another place—a braver place—than I could do on my own.” Sims added that she is selling the store because, she wrote, “I refuse to half-ass running Black Garnet or half-ass my schooling.”
