For Susan Warren, reading isn’t just a pleasant pastime. It is her passion and her profession. And she has parlayed it into a very nice business.
As the owner of Books ‘n’ Stuff bookstore on Long Beach Road near Southport, Warren has the distinction of having the oldest bookstore in Brunswick County. She’s been at it for 23 years.
Technically speaking, Warren is a bookseller. But to her customers, she is an invaluable resource for suggesting a good read for the beach or for book groups, for the intellectual or the lighthearted, and for everyone between.
Books ‘n’ Stuff carries some 50,000 books, about 94 percent of which are used paperbacks.
“I’m in the used paperback book business,” she said. “Read it, enjoy it, trade it in and get another one.”
Warren’s business model is very simple: Sell new paperbacks at a discount. Buy them back by issuing a credit slip for a fraction of the cost, and then resell them.
She sells new paperbacks at a 25 percent discount, then buys them back, as well as all other paperbacks that meet her criteria. She gives the customer a credit slip for 20 percent of the original cover price. She then resells the books for 50 percent of the cover price. It plays out like this. A new paperback with a retail price of $20 would sell for $15. The customer brings it back, and gets a credit slip for $4 to be spent on used books only. That locks them into spending more money in her store. She now has another used book to sell for $10, she has “the newest used books,” and she doesn’t have to pay for her inventory.
A large sign above the cash register spells out all the details.
For example, books with clipped covers or with a missing front or back cover are not accepted.
Books on CDs are becoming an increasingly important part of her business, and the same rules apply here for the sale and purchase of used CDs.
“Books ‘n’ Stuff” was originally located on Oak Island, however that came to an end when Warren’s landlord wanted to use the space. “It turned out to be the best bad thing that ever happened to me,” she said. The move changed her target market from a reliance on seasonal tourists to a year-round population. “I went from beach reads to book club reads, more men, more mysteries, spy novels and military books.”
Another shift in her business occurred a few years ago. She no longer carries miscellaneous items and accessories because they didn’t sell well, she said. That is with one exception – bookmarks. “I can’t keep them in stock.”
When asked what she expects e-books will do to her business, she said, “Nothing. I’ve got customers that have e-readers, and they still want the book. They want to put it on their shelf or they want to give it to a friend.”
Warren augments her bookselling business with ancillary services. She is a professional editor for fiction manuscripts, offers a typing service and provides faxing capability. But she is quick to say that her core business is selling used paperbacks, and her competitive edge is she knows her market and she knows her books. “I read three or four books at a time,” she said, “and I have this weird, quirky mind that remembers all the books I have read.”
Ken KeeganReal Estate Broker(910) 523-0903 mobileEmail Mewww.KenKeegan.com
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