Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Christopherson
Hi Ashley, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
When I saw You’ve Got Mail at maybe ten years old, I was captivated by the thought of running a bookstore. I assumed everyone was and that it was everyone’s dream job. I’ve been a reader since before I can remember, and the idea of creating community around books has always been something I enjoyed, whether it was just loaning a book to a friend or talking about books in my classes.
For my first couple years out of college, I worked in children’s book publishing and learned more about the book business. I started spending a lot of time visiting indie bookstores as a customer. My career took me out of publishing and into tech marketing for the next 6 years, but I never lost the dream of owning my own bookstore. So when the perfect space opened up in downtown Lakeville next to a coffee shop, I took the leap, quit my job, and got to work. I had so many people rally around me to help make it happen, and the store opened 3 months after I left my job.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Anyone who tells you opening their small business was a smooth road is lying. There were so many challenges along the way, not least of which was that I was learning how to do things as I did them. I had never opened a bookstore before, and there were so many things to do and decisions to make. I had to make decisions based on the best information I had rather than wait to feel certain about what would be best. I had to be scrappy with a small budget, which led to more creative decisions and relying on my community for help.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Niche Books is a small, independent bookstore located in downtown Lakeville, Minnesota. We sell both new and used books, and our hope is that anyone can find something that’s in their niche. We also sell bookish gifts, most of which are created by small businesses around the country. The store has a cozy, welcoming environment, and people often tell us that they feel at home here. We are the only independent bookstore in the south metro of the Twin Cities, so we are providing an experience that has been needed here. Chain bookstores can offer a lot of options but are less likely to have the personal touch that we do.
So far, we host one book club on a monthly basis along with weekly story times, and we have plans for more in-store events as our staff grows.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
It’s a pretty big risk to quit a stable job in tech in order to open a small business of any kind, especially one where you have a lot of learning to do. I gave up a salary and benefits, but it was a decision I had thought about for a while. I am a cautious person, so I had to be confident that this was a need in my community and that the business would be sustained. Not every risk is worth taking, but I have learned to pay attention to my instincts about whether I should take a chance on a particular opportunity.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://nichebooksmn.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nichebooksmn
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nichebooksmn/
