Red Stick Reads, the only local independent bookstore in Baton Rouge is getting a new location soon, but don’t worry, it will still be in Mid City — this time at the corner of Steele Boulevard and Government Street.
In January, co-owners James and Tere Hyfield were given notice that they would have to move their boutique bookstore by the end of the year. The new site, across the street from Mid City Beer Garden, is just a two-minute drive from the old one. They hope to move by the end of the year, but say the new shop may not be open until January or February.
For now, Red Stick Reads remains open at its 541 S. Eugene St. location.
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The new location will be twice as big as the current site and include a room that can be rented out for book clubs and other events. In the current Red Stick Reads location, story time on Saturday mornings renders the entire children's section unbrowsable; in the new location, this won’t be a problem.
The new location won’t have double the books, but it will have a cafe with coffee and tea and a lot more merchandise.
“I want to shift a lot of our attention from having a bunch of books on hand that maybe somebody wants to have more stuff that’s tangentially related — more stickers, more bags, more cups, more shirts, more knickknacks,” James Hyfield said. It’s part of a business strategy to stay afloat competing against Amazon and big box store prices.
The new location is right behind Baton Rouge Music Studios, and Hyfield said music studio owner Doug Gay has been enthusiastic about partnering together.
“I’m totally down for that,” Hyfield said. “To kind of combine our efforts and then hopefully even be able to rent out that flex room for students to do tutoring.”
Maybe Red Stick Reads can even provide a hangout spot for parents who currently sit in the parking lot waiting during their kids' music lessons.
“It was a bittersweet moment, because even though we didn't want to move, it's gonna be nice to be able to expand everything,” bookseller Windsor Adcox said.
But bookstores won’t stay around if people don’t show up to shop there, Hyfield reminds.
“They can order from us. We’re not just a kids' books place. We’re not just used books,” he said. “We’re a safe space.”