Fair’s Fair “For Book Lovers”

It was shocking to see my last blog was in March but as a small business owner I am almost always up to my a** in alligators so I guess I didn’t feel the need to holler into the wilderness until today.

What’s different? Someone made a comment to one of my blogs yesterday and an email a couple of days ago was a query from someone thinking about going into the book business.

I’ll include his query and my comments to him below:

— On Sat, 6/14/08, M***** <********@shaw.ca> wrote:

From: ********@shaw.ca>
Subject: Hello
To: info@FairsFair.com
Date: Saturday, June 14, 2008, 4:56 PM

Hi

I was just wondering if you have any book stores for sale. Is this a franchise?? Do you have any information on any business opportunities with your company?

Thanks  M*****

Hi ******,
Thanks for your email - I often wonder if people who visit the stores have any real inkling about how unusual our efforts are in our field.

Staff and customers have been told many, many times our business model is based upon work and not brains. That is the first thing I would say to you as well - we are not outsmarting anyone - we (everyone associated with our stores) are all working our a***s off and expect to continue to do so until the day we quit the book business and return to the real world.

Even in the tightest labor markets we receive applications for work but … most of the staff we hire do not complete their three month training period - others learn so much during the first three months they shut down and become ineffective because they delude themselves into believing they actually know something so we have to let them go as well. The staff who survive have a ravenous hunger for knowledge and a work ethic that is constantly reinvigorated by the pleasure they gain by learning everyday.

In other words, we are all nuts … about what we do and we can’t get enough.

To be absolutely honest - I don’t think any amount of money invested in the book business can ever be considered a good monetary investment - but it is an outstanding investment in a lifestyle if you are looking for personal growth and a sense that you have put yourself in a position to provide a service to a dying breed - readers (as great a group of human beings that exists in the world).

Your query serves as concrete evidence there is at least one person out there who senses we have something special going on.

We know how lucky we are and would be pleased to figure out a way to share our good fortune with others - if we just knew how.

We did help one fellow set up in Edmonton 4-5 years ago but quickly saw he was not someone we should have helped for several reasons.

The fellow who operates the (I edited out the name of the small town in Alberta) used book store came to us for help 10 years ago and because he is a good person as well as a workaholic we still see him often and have a friendly working relationship.

Thanks again for your query - if I haven’t completely discouraged you I work our Mount Royal store Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday evenings between 6PM and 9PM and am always interested in talking about books and the book business.

George

Other comments - we have helped two other people who wanted to get some knowledge about the book business and I think one of them is still in business in Manitoba. At least three other people who worked for us over the years ventured off on their own but as far as I know they are no longer active in the book business except perhaps on the fringes - once a book addict always a book addict.

None of what I have written here is intended to discourage anyone anywhere from starting a used books business - no matter how long you make it last you will likely remember them as the happiest days, weeks, months or years or your life.

Imagine living a life where  almost everyone you meet is pleasant. Working in comfortable surroundings while awaiting the arrivals of interesting individuals who are willing to hear about what you think you know and to teach you something they have read about or experienced. To be in daily contact with people who are constantly activating their brains, their emotions and their beings by exploring the world outside themselves which most people have come to neglect and ignore at their own peril.

Such is the dreamlike world of a bookseller and an enthusiastic clerk at a book store.

Welcome to my world - enter and enjoy.