Ginkgo Bookshop, a not-for-profit student-run used bookstore, opened Jan. 23 for students and community members to shop, relax and spend time surrounded by literature. Located on Elliewood Avenue on the Corner, it is conveniently close to Grounds — making it a great stop for students looking for a good book or a welcoming place to relax.
The bookshop underwent a name and ownership change earlier this month, switching from Heartwood Books to the Ginkgo Bookshop. The previous owner, Paul Collinge, planned to close Heartwood after 50 years in operation, but third-year College student Max Fleisher did not want the local institution to leave the Corner. He had been working for Collinge at the bookstore for about eight months and had been enjoying the bookshop since his first year at the University, so he developed a plan with fourth-year College student Molly Canipe to keep the Corner-staple running as a local bookstore.
“I went to him and I said, ‘What if I got enough money and enough support to make this happen as a student-run thing?’” Fleisher said. “It kind of just happened on [Jan. 1] that I went to [Collinge], and I was like, ‘I guess we're doing it.’”
Together with his friends, Canipe and third-year College student Miles Miskill, Fleisher spearheaded the efforts to revive the store and run it as a space for students. Beginning in January, the three students — plus numerous other friends and volunteers — have worked on restoring the building, updating the book selection and adding seating, which was missing from the previous setup.
Collinge said that while Fleisher and his friends will have a lot to overcome in terms of running a small business, he is excited for the bookshop to remain open. He has already noticed a shift in the people shopping at the bookshop, with more students coming in to buy books — which Collinge hopes is a sign that more students are being introduced to literature. He said he is glad that the University and Charlottesville community will continue to have a shop for people to find quality books at a decent price.
“I like the thought that the used bookstore here will survive for a while,” Collinge said. “[Fleisher’s] got lots of enthusiasm, and he knows a lot about books, and he works hard, and he's got people to help him … so those are all pluses.”
The shop is also in the process of becoming a 501(c)(3) organization, allowing it to operate as a non-profit, which Fleisher hopes will happen by the end of the spring semester. With this status, the bookshop would be able to receive donations and funding from patrons and the community, while also providing educational literature-related events and donations to literary organizations in Charlottesville such as WriterHouse and the local library. In doing so, Ginkgo is able to help University students and Charlotteville locals alike by promoting a love of reading and writing throughout the larger community.
Fleisher said that the name Ginkgo was inspired by the ginkgo tree near the Lawn, which is part of many University traditions. One such tradition that influenced Fleisher involves Assoc. Prof. of Global Studies David Edmunds, who gives out the yellow and green leaves that he has picked throughout the year to his students at their graduation. The ginkgo tree’s color changes are a staple for University students to see throughout the year, strengthening the connection between the shop and the student experience on Grounds.
Fleisher also wanted to keep the new name tree-related, as Collinge plans to continue to operate under Heartwood Books as a smaller by-appointment book seller next door to Ginkgo Bookshop starting this summer. Collinge said he hopes to make online sales in addition to using Ginkgo’s neighboring room to continue to sell books in a more relaxed and part-time role as he gets closer to retirement. Still, he said that he is happy to help Ginkgo out if they ever need advice.
Buying used books of all genres from thrift stores, yard and estate sales and local library sales, Fleisher has updated the used book collection that the store sells. He hopes that the bookstore will become not just a place for University students and professors, but a place that anyone can enjoy and find a great read, regardless of their age.
“We have begun buying more fantasy and sci-fi and fiction and the social sciences in hopes that young people will come in here and buy books,” Fleisher said. “We're hoping that undergrads will come in here and buy books for leisure. That's the goal.”
While the bookshop is still a work-in-progress, Fleisher hopes to make it a space for students and Charlottesville community members to gather with one another, house meetings and host music nights. The bookshop is currently working on hosting a variety of groups, including creative writing readings held by graduate Arts & Sciences students and meetings for Iris Magazine. They have already hosted small group meetings — such as academic cohorts — and a jazz night with the goal of expanding the bookshop into the broader Charlottesville community. With a few chairs and couches in the front of the store already, Fleisher wants the bookshop to become more than a place that sells books, but also a third-space for people to spend time with others.
“The goal eventually will be to have more places to sit and to hang out and to talk. I think a social bookstore is infinitely better than a silent one,” Fleisher said. “People can hang out here and do their homework and read their books, and they can come and play music and have conversations, and you get to do it with all the books around you, which is cool.”
Students who may have passed over a visit to the bookshop before are now finding themselves taking a trip to Ginkgo. Fourth-year College student Olivia Orellana, who attended the jazz night and a small class cohort meeting at the bookshop, said that she enjoyed the small and cozy atmosphere of the shop. The jazz night was packed, and she said that this brought a feeling of togetherness to the place, as several people came out to support the music and the work that Fleisher, Canipe and Miskill have put in.
“I definitely felt a strong sense of community while I was there,” Orellana said. “It was so nice to see so many people cram into the bookstore to celebrate [Fleisher, Canipe and Miskill’s] efforts to save such an important community space.”
Fleisher, Canipe and Miskill, with the help of other students and friends, have put many hours of work into making this bookshop what it is today, and the three of them plan on continuing to grow it and establish its legacy as a place for students to be on the Corner. The three of them have already noticed patrons appreciating the role Gingko plays on the Corner as a place to appreciate literature run by students in service of the community.
“I hope that this can stand as a reminder that bookstores still matter,” Canipe said. “[Books] still occupy important parts of people's lives, and that literacy and reading full books and having a connection with fictional worlds that help you make sense of your real world is still something that young people engage in and talk about and find important.”
Ginkgo Bookshop is in for a lot of trials, renovations and growth — but it has already started to be a place that students want to stop in and study or browse the book selection. With Fleisher’s ambitions of eventually selling coffee, utilizing student volunteers to work the desk and becoming a non-profit, Ginkgo Bookshop is set to become a beloved and one-of-a-kind stop on the Corner.
“I am so excited to just pop in, browse the books, and study there for a few hours. The atmosphere inside is so cozy and welcoming,” Orellana said. “It really is a very unique nook along the corner.”
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