Ballast Book Company opened in 2015, when Suzanne Droppert—then the owner of Liberty Bay Books in Poulsbo, Wash.—wanted to try selling books in nearby Bremerton. “We opened as a pop-up, and the store never unpopped,” said Ballast owner Kate Larson, who came over from Liberty Bay to manage the shop.
Larson later left the Pacific Northwest for Bank Square Books in Mystic, Conn., but she maintained ties to Bremerton, which has become a bedroom community for Seattleites. “I got a phone call from Suzanne, saying she was retiring and asking whether I’d keep the store running,” Larson said. On June 1, 2021, she took the reins of the 750-sq.-ft. space.
Science fiction, fantasy and romance are Ballast’s top categories, and Larson counts Rules for Ghosting by Shelly Jay Shore, Greenteeth by Molly O’Neill, and Swordheart by T. Kingfisher among her bestsellers, along with queer fiction by H.E. Edgemon and Ash Van Otterlu. “We have a ton of book clubs” based on book selections from Ballast booksellers, Larson said. “People are really looking for ways to connect,” so she and her staff facilitate club meetings and off-site author events.
Lise Solomon, sales rep for the Karel/Dutton Group and PW’s rep of the year in 2016, nominated Ballast for bookstore of the year, praising Ballast’s “dynamic connection” to the region. “They are so creative and thoughtful about what they order and the programs they embrace,” Solomon wrote in her nomination.
Larson agrees that community building is a top priority. “Because Bremerton is in such a period of growth and transition, I’m on the downtown association board, and we’re trying to get Main Street Washington approval” to revitalize the historic commercial zone where the store is located, Larson said. And as a small business owner, she added, “Honestly, the best piece of advice I could give anybody is to invest in your employees. That’s something Suzanne did, and it’s really paid off for me.”
