Alcohol and Books

Chad nails a couple things while discussing a bookstore that decided to add alcoholic beverages to its cafe menu. First he quotes from an article on the bookstore:

Fehsenfeld envisions adding beer and wine to his cafe’s extensive coffee menu, so bookstore patrons could have a glass with dinner, browse the books, relax by the fireplace and maybe listen to a live concert. As downtown condominiums have developed, so has downtown retail traffic, he said. Although the depressed real estate market has slowed new downtown starts for now, Fehsenfeld is positioning Schuler’s downtown location to move forward with it in the future.

And then he goes on to comment that

The idea of making a bookstore (or library) a “destination” isn’t necessarily new, and a lot of independent bookstore owners implement different ideas to accomplish just this. Expanding more in this direction seems to me to be a really smart idea for the future. Or for right now. With the economy all kinds of f-ed up, I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a significant increase in the number of people just hanging out in Schuler on a Friday night . . .

No, this idea isn't new at all. While I was in Latin America, it was difficult to find a bookstore with a cafe that didn't sell alcohol. (You could pretty much get a full bar anywhere that sold any sort of beverage. I imagine the situation is similar in many parts of Europe.) And, of course, alcoholic beverages, in addition to freeing impulsive spending and improving atmosphere, offer pretty friendly margins. A win-win . . . win for bookstores!

Chad continues:

And although B&N/Borders have cafes, it’s not quite the same, and the atmosphere at those stores—despite all the puffy chairs and moderately interesting book signing—still isn’t that inviting, making the box stores the sort of place you go to buy something and get out.

I don't mean to be an indie triumphalist here, but the fact is that in my experience indie bookstores have generally had a more inviting feel. I think it's mostly to do with the fact that they don't feel pressure to conform to a uniform national brand and generally don't deal with a layer of bureaucracy intent on projecting a certain image. But, again, alcohol would go a long ways toward even making your local Borders cafe feel cool. You can even extend this fact to regular cafes that aren't attached to bookstores: nothing says "come and hang out" like a little alcohol.