When Persnickety Books packed up its shelves and moved to a new location due to a rent increase, co-owner Ian Baltutis wasn’t sure what the new space would hold for them. But after a month at its new location, Baltutis said the store has only grown from where it used to be.
“It is a relief to know that as we took this change, took this risk of moving, we feel like we didn’t lose a stride, and we have a nice solid foundation to build from,” Baltutis said. “Instead of having to rebuild, we feel like we truly are carrying that energy and momentum, and we get to shape our future in this new space.”
The first task was moving the store’s entire inventory from its downtown Burlington location six blocks down the road to its new home on East Davis Street. The neighborhood around the bookstore features fewer businesses than the downtown area, but Baltutis said they have seen a similar number of customers visit the new space.
Baltutis said the large turnout of volunteers who came out to help pack and transfer books highlights the store’s connection to the community.
“We moved the entire store in about seven hours on a Saturday, which was a true testament to our community of support,” Baltutis said. “Fifty volunteers, including the Beta fraternity from Elon, came out. There were over 20 Elon students here helping move some very heavy items, and we’re eternally grateful to them.”
Co-owner of Persnickety Books Ian Baltutis works to make Persnickety a welcoming space for all customers.
While the square footage is similar, the new store’s layout differs from its former three-story space. Baltutis said its new space puts all of its retail items on the same floor, forcing them to cut back on what they can display. However, he said the new space allows them to offer a larger seating area for customers to socialize.
“Before, we had a coffee bar in a bookstore, and the idea was you come get your coffee and shop for some books,” Baltutis said. “Now, we really have the space to work from your laptop or meet your friends and neighbors or ride your bike down here and hang out, and I think that really fits our vibe of being more immersed in the neighborhood.”
The new store is also more accessible, according to Baltutis. They now have an American with Disabilities Act accessible restroom and other amenities to fit the diverse needs of their customers, Baltutis said. Compared to its last space, all of the business’s retail is accessible on one floor.
Local resident Terri Robinson has shopped at both locations and said she’ll miss having the bookstore in the downtown area but is excited to see how the store will impact its new neighborhood.
“I was really disappointed because I liked having it in downtown, and I hate that there’s not a bookstore in downtown because it was a great place to hang out,” Robinson said. “But it’s closer to me, and maybe they’ll bring some life to this particular block. So there’s a win on that one, but sad for downtown.”
Jesse Vargas owns Seven Ten Distillery across the street from Persnickety and has seen an uptick in foot traffic since more stores have opened in the neighborhood. Vargas said both he and the employees at Persnickety encourage their customers to head over to the neighboring businesses.
“We couldn’t do our business without the community that we’re building, and we definitely appreciate the fact that Persnickety took the opportunity to come down to this part of town and really take ownership of some of this as well,” Vargas said.
Vargas said every business in the area wants the same for the neighborhood: a lively area with a thriving community.
“Everybody here is homegrown North Carolina, and everybody just wants East Davis Street to become a new part of the downtown area,” Vargas said. “It was once forgotten, and now everybody from the massage parlor to the shipping center to the dog groomers, from Persnickety to us, everybody just wants this to become a new, fruitful community.”