 "Photo: Candace Shankel | The Spectator")
 "Photo: Candace Shankel | The Spectator")
 "Photo: Candace Shankel | The Spectator")
When people think of things to do in Seattle’s Pioneer Square, one thing immediately comes to mind: buy books.
The neighborhood’s association with literature is thanks in large part to Elliott Bay Book Company, who announced last fall that they would be pulling out of their location of 36 years and moving up to Capitol Hill. But even in the absence of Elliott Bay, Pioneer Square stands out as Seattle’s most prominent book district; it’s home to a dozen different independent booksellers, and most of them carry used titles that literary lovers can stockpile without breaking their bank.
Located only yards away from Elliott Bay’s current location is The Globe, a deep and narrow hole-in-the-wall bookstore with an inventory that offers “a little bit for everybody,” according to owner John Siscoe.
Siscoe and his wife Carolyn started The Globe 30 years ago in the University District and opened their Pioneer Square location a decade later. Both stores are still going strong today.
The Globe stocks a small assortment of new titles, but most of its inventory is used. For Siscoe, low prices determine the bottom line of what the store carries.
In the basement of the same building is Newberry Books, an even smaller cranny with a decidedly different kind of literary specialization. Owned by Mark Newberry who lived in Japan for four years the shop’s shelves are piled with books on history, art and all things related to Asian culture.
A couple of doors down from Newberry is Wessel & Lieberman Booksellers, Inc., a store that offers a hodgepodge, from antiquarian, out-of-print texts to the hottest new titles.
Just around the corner from Wessel & Lieberman is Seattle Mystery Bookshop, the city’s only bookstore specializing entirely in mystery novels. From old “whodunits” to modern true crime titles, Seattle Mystery Bookshop is the place to go for readers looking for a literary thrill.
With all the different book vendors in Pioneer Square, it would be easy to assume there would be hostility between the different shops, but in truth they all agree that competition isn’t a thought that often crosses their mind.
“Bookstores are synergistic,” says Bill Farley, owner of Seattle Mystery Bookshop. “The more you have in the same area, the better.”
Michael Lieberman, co-owner of Wessel & Lieberman, couldn’t agree more.
“There’s no competitive angle [in book selling],” Lieberman says. “When you’re dealing with non-new books, everyone’s inventory is different.”
Newberry’s biggest wish is for Pioneer Square to turn into a bona fide book district; according to him, the collaboration between book vendors is what keeps business successful.
“If you don’t have something someone’s looking for, but you help somebody find it anyway by sending them somewhere else, they’re going to remember you,” Newberry says. “The greatest satisfaction for me is helping somebody find a book they’ve been looking for—it’s like a birthday.”
This cooperative agreement may help each individual shop’s sales, but it’s also a big reason why many store owners are fretting the loss of Elliott Bay.
“I think Pioneer Square will be devastated by Elliott Bay leaving,” Farley says. “We send a lot of people to Elliott Bay for things we don’t carry, and they do the same for us.”
Lieberman’s biggest concern is that the Elliott Bay move is going to hurt not only book business in Pioneer Square, but business in general.
“[Elliott Bay] has been the retail anchor down here for 30 years, and obviously there are consequences when any neighborhood loses that,” Lieberman says.
But even as Pioneer Square owners fret the loss of the biggest name in Seattle book vendors, they are still hopeful that the neighborhood will carry on as the prominent book center in town.
“I’m not worried about my business,” Siscoe says, “I’m worried about Elliott Bay. But I’m glad they played the move card, and not the fold card. I don’t know how their move will affect [Pioneer Square], but I’m excited to see.”
For Lieberman, the real issue of concern is not Pioneer Square as a neighborhood, but Elliott Bay itself.
“The neighborhood is not to blame for [Elliott Bay’s] move,” he says. “There’s no difference between Capitol Hill and here. The parking is not worse down here.”
Even without Elliott Bay, Pioneer Square has its own book nooks for Seattle’s bibliophiles. It’s just a matter of remembering these reading rooms are there.
Matthew may be reached at copy@su-spectator.com
1 comments