HANAPEPE — Ed and Cynthia Justus of Talk Story Bookstore and the Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank are two Kaua‘i finalists in the Hawai‘i Better Business Bureau’s 2011 BBB Torch Awards. The Talk Story Bookstore in Hanapepe is one of three
HANAPEPE — Ed and Cynthia Justus of Talk Story Bookstore and the Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank are two Kaua‘i finalists in the Hawai‘i Better Business Bureau’s 2011 BBB Torch Awards.
The Talk Story Bookstore in Hanapepe is one of three finalists in the Small Business Category, while the KIFB is one of three finalists in the Public Charity Category, states a March 15 announcement on the Hawai‘i BBB website.
“We feel honored that the Talk Story Bookstore has been selected as one of the three finalists,” Ed said. “We were nominated by Connie Clausen of American Savings Bank and are humbled that people feel we are worthy of these types of honor.”
The Talk Story Bookstore, sitting adjacent to the now-vacant Aloha Theater and occupying the space formerly used as a general store, has taken its past heritage and converted it to more contemporary terms, joining the rest of the historic Hanapepe town in creating a festival-like atmosphere on Friday nights while conducting day-to-day business in the relaxed Westside lifestyle.
Instead of textiles and general merchandise occupying shelves which date back to the plantation era, more than 40,000 new, quality secondhand, rare and collectible books now sit on the shelves.
“This includes more than 3,000 children and young reader books,” Cynthia said, pausing to help visitors who saunter through the door and experience the floors which sag from its age. “We hand pick and buy more than 2,000 books a month which doesn’t include what people bring in to the store for credit. We have something for everyone.”
Ed and Cynthia also join the rest of the island in lamenting the closure of Borders Books and Music.
“We used to go there and browse like we do all the places that sell books,” Cynthia said. “It was a good relationship because we would send people there if we knew they had the books people were looking for and Borders would call us with some of the requests their shoppers had.”
As the days get shorter until the doors to Borders close for good, Ed said they purchased a number of the bookshelves which will replace some of the original shelving.
“Age and time has taken its toll on the original shelves,” he said. “We keep repairing them and they keep needing attention. It’s time to put some new ones in.”
In addition to the shelves, Cynthia said they are earmarked to receive some of the category signage from Borders.
“They said we’re about the only people on the island who can use them,” Cynthia said.
When Borders closes its doors for good, Talk Story Bookstore becomes one of the larger retailer of books which satisfy a wide range of subjects readers look for.
“We just did a book signing for John Wehrheim on his ‘Taylor Camp’ book, and we’re open as a venue for authors who want to do signings,” Ed said in a release. “We will also honor ‘Borders Rewards’ cards with a guaranteed 20 percent discount through the end of the year.”
On a daily basis, Talk Story Bookstore offers a 10 percent kama‘aina discount, and an additional 10 percent on their birthday, extended to the entire month. A “Buy 4, get the 5th Free” rounds out some of the daily specials, factors that surprised one Hanapepe resident as to how reasonably priced her selection was.
“We’re here for everyone on the island,” Cynthia said. “There are a lot of people on Kaua‘i who like to read. Right now, about a third of our business comes from local residents.”
Another service provided by Talk Story Bookstore is a throwback to the plantation days where Ed and Cynthia will meet customers in Lihu‘e on days they spend doing things with the Salvation Army.
“There are people who just don’t want the books mailed to them,” Cynthia said. “They ask us when we’re going to be in town and make arrangements to meet us with their orders.”
Those orders are a key part of the bookstore’s offerings as the couple spends their days on the phone and on the computer researching customers’ requests.
“We do this for a living,” Cynthia said. “Where people can spend hours searching the Internet for a particular book, we can do it in a fraction of the time because of the resources we have available.”
In addition to the special orders and wish lists from customers, Talk Story Bookstore will mail books internationally — even on-island.
Ed said in addition to the local trade, Talk Story Bookstore sells through Amazon.com, which potentially puts the store in front of about 6 billion people around the world.
But this doesn’t stop the homegrown atmosphere, especially on Friday nights when Talk Story Bookstore stays open late and the night activities kick off with the offerings of pie from The Right Slice. Additional activities include a car gathering once a month, and local musicians and crafters joining the festive mood with their contributions.
“People can come and make a complete evening of their trip to Hanapepe,” Cynthia said.
Another unique facet is the letter boxing which Cynthia said attracts people from a lot of different places.
“There are about 15 to 20 places on Kaua‘i where letter boxes are located, but when a customer comes in looking for dictionaries, I just point them to this weathered book,” she said.
Inside, there is a cutout with a special stamp accompanied by a small book containing stamps from the letter boxers who visit the location.
“It’s anything book,” Cynthia said. “It’s not about making a buck, but it’s worthwhile when you find a book someone has been looking for.”
Winners of the 2011 BBB Torch Awards will be announced April 28 at a luncheon at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Resort and Spa on O‘ahu.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com.
