The Booksellers at Laurelwood expands its selection to include used books

In a world where online book sales can bring down big-box bookstores, one Memphis independent bookseller is still standing strong, and adapting to make sure it stays that way.

Current statistics can be frightening for book sellers, particularly for independent stores. According to industry statistics reported last month in The New Yorker, e-books account for about 30 percent of current book sales, with Amazon taking a 65 percent share of that category. Meanwhile, during the past 20 years, the number of independent booksellers in the United States has decreased by more than 50 percent, plummeting from about 4,000 to less than 2,000. Subsequently, independent booksellers sell less than 10 percent of all books sold today.

The Booksellers at Laurelwood, however, not only is still thriving, it’s expanding its offerings. The latest step in the independently owned bookstore’s evolution is used books — the store is currently buying them. And soon, the store will be selling them.

“Our mainstay has always been new books, but it’s always kind of been out there that used books was another area that we could possibly move toward,” said owner Neil Van Uum. “It’s all part of the mandatory evolution – we have no option. We have to continue to evolve and adapt and change, and this is the next step we’ve decided to take.”

The decision makes sense from both a business and a customer-service standpoint, Van Uum said. “Selling used books also allows us to provide a much stronger backlist of titles. We may not want to buy a certain book and try to sell it at $12.95 or $16.95, but that book and its story priced at $3 to $5? Yes, we could probably sell that and make a little bit of money.”

So far, the company hasn’t done much to promote the new venture, yet customers are already bringing in books. “Mass-market fiction is the biggest seller, so we’d love to buy lots of paperback fiction, mysteries and romance,” he said. “We’re in sort of a ramp-up stage now. Recently we’ve been buying books more aggressively than we will in the future. If our goal is to sell 80 to 100 used books a day, for instance, then we’ll only be able to buy 80 to 100 used books a day.”

By Erinn Figg