Help Books of Wonder Relocate!
Books of Wonder needs to relocate! After 15 years at 18 West 18th Street in NYC, our lease is coming to an end.
We have found a wonderful new location not far from our current store, but to renovate and move in will require an investment of $250,000 to $350,000 (NYC isn't cheap!). So we are reaching out to the children's book community for support with this GoFundMe campaign.
Some of you may wonder why after so many years in business, we do not have the resources to handle this move on our own. The fact is that the financial stability of this store was dependent on the contribution of our sub-tenant a bakery/cafe/caterer. They were responsible for 40% of the rent and other expenses. Unfortunately, they went out of business during the Great Recession, owing us over $300,000 in rent and other expenses. We did find another sub-tenant, who paid faithfully the first few years, but unfortunately, ran into financial trouble two years ago and has left us having to pay most of the rent. This has unfortunately, depleted our working capital.
As of September 2nd, Books of Wonder began its 40th year in business. We hope to serve the children, families, authors, artists, and children's book community of the NYC area and beyond for many more years to come. With your help and that of our other many friends and supporters, we hope this will be possible. If you'd like to help us make this happen, please consider making a donation.
We thank you all for your support. No donation is too small (or too big!) and if you prefer to remain anonymous, that's fine, though we would love to be able to thank all those who contribute.
