In an era of closing bookstores, shrinking sales, and the recent bankruptcy of Borders, here’s a story on the other side of the coin. Publishers Weekly is reporting a plan by Mysterious Galaxy to expand. The San Diego, California-based sf and mystery bookstore—which has been at 7051 Clairemont Mesa Boulevard since 1993—is planning to open a second store in Redondo Beach, California, this summer.
Like the original, the new Mysterious Galaxy will be an sf specialty shop, but will also expand its offerings outside our genres. The store will be in a 6,000-square-foot building, with one-third of the space given over to a cafe.
The expansion is a result, according to PW, of co-owner Terry Gilman’s popular book-and-author series, “Ladies, Lunch, and Literacy”, which debuted in the Redondo Beach area in 2008. “It met with such success that Gilman and her partners Maryelizabeth Hart and Jeff Mariotte decided the neighborhood would welcome the addition of a branch of Mysterious Galaxy.”
Hart, the store’s publicity manager, said “There’s so much bad news in the industry right now—bankruptcies, store closings, and the like—but the fact is that there are opportunities for growth. Mysterious Galaxy has always been about combining our love of books with an emphasis on creating community and exercising sound business judgment. We expect the Redondo Beach location to continue setting standards of excellence throughout the bookselling world.”