Today we’d like to introduce you to Julia Bodwell.
Hi Julia, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
After almost a decade teaching middle school language arts, I felt it was time for a new adventure. As much as I loved being with my students, I knew another 30 years in education just wasn’t the right fit for me. Our town hadn’t had an indie bookstore in almost 10 years, and I often complained to my husband that I wished one would open.
One day, the idea struck that I would be the one to fill that need in the community! As a voracious reader and writer myself, it felt like the right transition from classroom teacher, where I worked hard to inspire my students to love reading, to bookstore owner, where I could continue that mission on a larger scale.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I doubt any small business owner would say starting their business was completely smooth sailing!
But relatively speaking, we had very little struggles overall getting the business started, at least where larger issues are concerned. I was fortunate enough to have access to a network of other booksellers around the country to help guide me through the process, and we were lucky that the right space became available at the right time when we were looking for our storefront.
The biggest obstacle when getting the store open was waiting on city permits for our remodel; that was a big struggle mostly because I’m not a very patient person! There have of course been smaller bumps along the way, which are just part of the process of starting a business. I look at those challenges as a way to constantly learn, grow, and evolve to meet the needs of our customers.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
In addition to being a bookstore owner, I’m also an indie author and musician. I work hard to support other local artists, authors, and creatives by bringing their work into the store, whether to regularly sell in-store, or as pop-up vendors during special events.
I also host special events, such as Open Mic Night and Local Author Book Fairs, for them to showcase their talents.
Of course, our goal is to sell books– we are a bookstore, after all!– but we also want to be more than a bookstore; we want to be a destination, a place people want to come and gather, to share in their love of literature and art.
Who else deserves credit for your story?
The biggest credit goes to my husband, who does a lot of behind-the-scenes work to help grow the business and support me with the day-to-day. He works full-time as a graphic designer, so he’s the one responsible for our logos and branded retail items.
Though he isn’t in the store much (unless I’m unavailable), he’s still very much a part of the business. My mom has also been incredibly supportive and helpful, pitching in during special events to help things run smoothly. And of course, all of our friends and family have supported us near and far, either by telling people to come see us, shopping with us, or just generally lending their love and support (big shoutout to our friend, Ashley, who killed it helping us paint the store before we opened!). As I mentioned previously, I also have access to a large virtual network of booksellers across the country, who were happy to share their experiences and help however possible.
To that extent, there’s also a very supportive network of local booksellers right in the Tampa Bay Area who’ve been great about sending people our way. As well, all of the local merchants right in town have been incredibly supportive, too, sending their customers to us and partnering with us on events, such as Trivia Night and Boozy Book Fairs. It takes a village, and we’re forever grateful for ours.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thegildedpagebookstore.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thegildedpagebookstore/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheGildedPageBookstore
