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‘Indie’ bookstore to stop selling books, focus on coffee
by Jonathan Cribs
jonathan@dekalbchamp.com
 A month after one of Decatur’s primary independent booksellers closed, another book destination will soon quietly disappear: Indie Coffee & Books on Ponce de Leon Avenue in downtown Decatur.
The shop has changed ownership and new owners will take over the café April 20, an employee at the store said April 13. The store will no longer sell books and focus entirely on coffee sales. The change in ownership was also reported in local blogs. Customers expressed disappointment with the change and shrugged it off as a consequence of the business climate in Decatur.
“It’s quaint. Everybody’s not scattered out,” said Sherri Howell, 56, of Decatur. “It’s so convenient. … Before I got my car, this is where I came mostly.” Walt Duhaine, 63, of Decatur, said he was one of the shop’s top customers and had been coming to Indie Coffee & Books since the store opened in August 2006. He said he’s purchased “quite a number” of books from the shop but comes mostly for the tea.
“It’s probably not that big a deal. … It’s still going to be an independent coffee shop,” he said. “I don’t really have a problem going to Borders.”
Wordsmiths, an independent book dealer on North McDonough Street, closed early last month, much to readers’ disappointment. In an online note to customers, the owner cited the economic downturn as a key factor.
Whether Indie Coffee & Books’ decision to close is part of a growing trend is unclear if not unlikely, said Meg Smith, chief marketing officer of the American Booksellers Association. Independent booksellers have been hurt by the rise of Internet book sales and the economic downtown, but new, independent book stores continue to open nationwide, helped significantly by a consumer-driven effort to support independently owned booksellers, she said.
“I can’t speak to the particular situation [in Decatur], but I would emphasize that it’s always a particular situation,” Smith said. Independent bookstores, like other small, independent retailers, rely on ancillary services and products to supplement book sales revenue. More bookstores hold events or rent their store out to community groups to bring more traffic into the store, Smith said.
In Indie Coffee & Books’ case, however, the books themselves turned out to be the supplemental revenue. It’s not a large bookseller by any means. On Monday, the shop’s entire collection took up just several sparsely packed bookcases in the back of the store, but the emphasis was on challenging literature – work from authors and writers including Hunter S. Thompson, Thomas Pynchon, Richard Russo, John Steinbeck and David Foster Wallace.
The shop was started by two computer professionals, Jason Grier and Ivy Chen, who marketed the shop to educated professionals older than 30. It served premium coffees, and owners hosted live music, film screenings and other events inside the 950-square-foot space.
An e-mail to the store’s manager was not answered as of press time April 14.
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