Local bookstore gets creative to stay afloat during pandemic

COVID-19 has forced smaller, independent businesses to rethink how they do things in order to keep operating.

Books and Company, a bookstore and cafe hybrid in downtown Prince George, is doing its best to keep the element of human connection.

The bookstore is offering things like curbside pickup, and personalized recommendations.

“Traffic and not being able to have the team here have been the biggest things,” explained Bookstore Manager Kayli Vandermeer.

She said even though their operating hours have been cut from seven days a week down to four hours a day, five days a week, they are still busy, just in a different way.

“We locked our doors up so that people can call us from the front door to be let in, and that helps us keep track of who is in the store and to keep numbers down.”

“It’s a lot more cardio, a lot of back and forth between the doors to let people in and out, and a lot of running books out to vehicles!” Vandermeer explained.

Despite the reduced hours, Books and Company has remained ‘pretty busy’ according to Vandermeer.

“We are trying to get really creative with what serves a really stressed out mom entertaining three kids at home the best without dragging them into the store and making them look around.”

They also have been putting kits together, recommending reads and taking payment by phone.

“Talking to other small independent bookstores, it’s extremely hard right now,”

“It really is that community aspect of it; ‘I know you, I know the things that you read’ that is really helping bookstores pull through, that personal touch, but times are hard,” Vandermeer said.

Management is looking into the logistics of home delivery, but they haven’t ironed out all the details yet.

“We will likely be running home delivery by the end of the week,”

“It will be one day a week and it will be five dollars, people will pay over the phone with a credit card and then we will run things out to their house.”