Last weekend Russell and I checked out The Bookworm in Poughkeepsie.
The store is a bit out-of-the-way on a curvy two-lane road. We had to turn around and backtrack because we'd driven past the driveway for the store before we even noticed it was there.
The shop is brightly lit with a large front counter and a spacious entryway where new stock is displayed. There were two salespeople working on Saturday. The guy manning the front counter was friendly and asked us whether we needed assistance. There is a small side counter where the second salesperson was sitting. I didn't pay much attention to her or her counter, but Russell thought that she was peddling jewelry.
Romance makes up about 35-40% of The Bookworm's stock. That's an guesstimate and it does seem like it might be an exaggeration, but seriously the front door is in the center of the shop and if you turn left, that side is audio books and romance. Only audio books and romance (and a small table of marked-down hardcovers). Everything else is on the other side of the shop.
Per Russell, The Bookworm's nonfiction selection was miniscule and not particularly well organized. For context, it seemed like the nonfiction section was about the same size as the children's section (not including YA books).
There was a good selection within the various fiction sections. And lots of little notes to point shoppers in the direction of their favorite authors (ie. look for so-and-so in paranormal, with arrow).
Overall the stock was on the newer side, in good condition, and strongest in romance and non-genre fiction. I suspect that it gets refreshed frequently because of The Bookworm's business model.
Individual items are not labeled. I was very confused by this until Russell showed me the big sign that explained The Bookworm's buy/sell policies (strangely, the sign isn't by the front counter, it's near the audio books).
The store's pricing is standardized, but high. 50% off list, plus a 25c handling fee. So they'd sell a $16 trade paperback for $8.25. They buy books (ie. give store credit) at 25% of list. The Bookworm seems like the kind of place that caters to regulars who treat it like a library, trading in their recently-read books for new reading material.
We didn't buy anything. Russell didn't find anything in the nonfiction he wanted and I didn't find anything I liked well enough to buy at their prices.
The Bookworm
1797 New Hackensack Rd.
Poughkeepsie, NY 12603
845-462-3873
hours: 10am - 5pm
closed Sundays
open 'til 6pm on Wednesdays
Just stumbled on your site...just wanted to say that I LOVE the Bookworm. It definitely is great for regulars who maintain a good amount of credit, but honestly I've been to used bookstores whose prices are even higher. The most recent one I visited, their prices were higher even with credit. But, if you live in this area and trade books in, you can walk out the door with a bag full of books for next to nothing. I don't even live around there, but my Grandma does and I always make sure to pay a visit when I'm in the area.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Christine!
DeleteYes, the shop is very good for regulars. I buy a bag of books at the library sales for cheap and get more credit than I bought the books for, even if they don't take everything I'm bringing. The non-fic section might be small because I keep taking an armload from it when I visit... A fair review though. I don't know how much they profit in all those romances and if it's not all that much, I wouldn't mind seeing some of that space for more non-fic.
ReplyDelete