The good news is that New England Mobile Book Fair owner Tom Lyons says he is “getting calls from people who have space” for a new home for his cherished Newton landmark.
The bad news is those offers are not in Newton.
Good news, bad news regarding New England Mobile Book Fair
by Greg Reibman | Mar 25, 2017 | Needham Street | 9 comments
I’d be curious if the well-meaning city officials can pull this off. This is where the desire of elected officials and local residents may run into the business reality. It’s really up to the owners of the buildings to agree to some kind of rent that would make the business viable.
Apgujung (sp) and South Pacific restaurants stand empty at the edge of Newton Highlands and Waban!
@Sallee, moving into a former restaurant would give a whole new meaning to the phrase “cooking the books.” (I thought you of all people might appreciate a really bad pun.)
Chuck Tanowitz is absolutely spot on. Owners of commercial space in this city demand high rents for the most part because they can. Short of prohibiting banks and nail salons from every village center, there is little city officials can do to change the real estate market (not that I am advocating for that).
It should be noted that the current owner of the building sold the business to Mr. Lyons in 2011. Competition in retail book sales from online booksellers (read Amazon, which just opened a new mega-warehouse in Fall River) meant that it was only a matter of time before NEMBF would have to downsize to a less expensive space. Sadly, it is a business model that is in a sort of a death spiral. Keeping inventory costs money to rent space and if your sales are down your margin gets even tighter. And if you keep less inventory and you have to order books for customers that you used to keep in stock, you lose out to the online booksellers. Lose-lose. It pains me to say this, but even if NEMBF can find a smaller less expensive place to rent, these market factors plus having to win customers back at a new location may spell doom. But we are seeing the same problem across most if not all markets for brick and mortar retail businesses.
How about the vacant spaces at the end of the Antiques Mall in the Echo Bridge Office Park? There used to be a second hand book store overlooking the courtyard at center. Wouldn’t either of these spaces enable Haynes Management company to provide amenities for current and future tenants as well as a service to the community.
City Councilor Brian Yates
They say they’re looking for a location with a fair amount of foot traffic. None of the spots suggested in this thread provide that, and most places in the city that do are very expensive to rent.
Add it to the Washington Place list of demands.
Does NEMBF have foot traffic now? That doesn’t make sense to me.
I’m not sure how much they plan to downsize and these are probably too small, but it’s about time we see some businesses moving into those vacant Elm Street storefronts. I think it a bookstore would be a nice addition to West Newton.
NEMBF (or the property owner) has long been in control of a possible improvement to increase foot traffic. The Needham Street frontage has a few parking spaces and a curb-cut/driveway to the main lot for the book store and the adjacent strip mall-let (ATT and For Eyes). Meanwhile, the parking lot runs along, but is closed to, Columbia Ave.
Move the parking lot entrance to Columbia Ave and build out the front of the lot with something that will attract folks to both the new store and NEMBF, like a small eatery or coffee store. In doing so, add continuity to the Needham St. streetscape and get rid of another curb cut.
That’s not going to happen, unfortunately.
It’ll be sad to see NEMBF go, though I confess we don’t go often. But, I sure hope that whatever happens to the building, they close that damn curb cut!