Last fall, Books West closed its doors after 42 years. Book lovers felt the loss and, each time they passed by the empty storefront on Kalispell’s Main Street, they were reminded of it.
But if they’ve driven down Main Street recently, they’ve noticed life stirring in the vacant space. And it’s the kind of life they like to see – people looking through books.
On Aug. 17, Shay and Melissa Evanoff opened The Bookshelf on the corner of Main and First streets, in the old home of Books West.
“People have told us that they were sad when Books West closed, but they’re glad to see a bookstore here again,” Melissa said. “We’ve had a lot of customers who were customers of Books West.”
The Bookshelf is a used bookstore, with a collection of about 20,000 titles, and counting. But if the term “used” conjures up thoughts of dusty hardbacks and dilapidated paperbacks, then the Evanoffs’ shop will likely surprise you.
The Evanoffs enlisted the help of relatives to clean each book, one by one, before it went on a shelf. No dust, no old sticker remnants, no grime. And the rows of books are easily navigable with clearly marked categories.
“We want to have a clean, organized store,” Melissa said, adding that many of the books are in like-new condition.
Shay Evanoff said he’s confident the store can do well, despite the trend of bookstores struggling across the country in the face of a shortened national attention span, the prevalence of books at large box stores and the availability of reading material through various avenues of technology.
By offering quality, discounted books and trade-in opportunities at a locally owned store, the Evanoffs believe they have an attractive business model. When customers bring in a book, they receive 25 percent of the cover price for in-store credit. If they want cash, they get 5 percent of the cover price.
If customers don’t bring in a book and are simply perusing titles, the Evanoffs say they have plenty of good options to choose from at an affordable rate.
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Melissa Evanoff organizes a book into its place on the shelving around the new used bookstore, The Bookshelf. Melissa and her husband, Shay Evanoff, recently opened the bookstore on Main Street in Kalispell. |
“We’re telling people that, ‘Yeah, on Amazon it might say it’s a penny for a book, but it’s $4 for shipping and you still have to wait to get it,’” Shay said. “Once they see they have that same thing in town, in good condition, and they can get it right away, we think they’ll like that.”
Shay said “we’re trying to get as many varieties in here as we can,” and so far they have more than 30 categories, ranging from general fiction to romance to specific hobbies such as cooking.
But the Evanoffs’ greatest emphasis is local – books about Glacier National Park, new releases by regional authors and anything Montana. Since the store has been open, Melissa said American Indian history books have been popular sellers.
Foot traffic has been steady, with tourists providing a lot of The Bookshelf’s early business. The Evanoffs haven’t been advertising much yet, choosing to gain their bearings first, though they did send out their 11- and 10-year-old sons with fliers to distribute around town last week. In a family business, everyone pitches in.
Before opening the store, Melissa home-schooled her kids and Shay worked as a plumber. Shay still is a plumber, though he spends as much time at the shop as possible. Melissa is transitioning back into the working life and the kids are adapting to a different school routine.
“Big changes for everybody,” Melissa said.
Used books, Shay said, offer a particular mystique. Where has this book been and who owned it last? Citing an example, he said that he and his wife found one book that carried a military man’s diary entries from the 1890s, charting his travels across the globe.
“Each book,” Shay said, “has its own history.”
The Bookshelf is located at 101 Main Street in downtown Kalispell. It can be reached at (406) 756-2665.