Like nearly every small business in the country right now, BookSmart of Morgan Hill is in dire need of support as the economy has come crashing down due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Most businesses, including BookSmart, are struggling to find ways to stay in operation. But while its business is in jeopardy, that hasn’t stopped BookSmart owners Brad Jones and Cinda Meister from working to help others in the community impacted by the virus.
BookSmart is working with the Edward Boss Prado Foundation to get books into the hands of needy children whose parents may not have the means to purchase such educational materials while school campuses are shut down. People can drop off new or gently used children’s books inside a barrel outside the bookstore’s location at 421 Vineyard Town Center, or they can make a cash donation, which BookSmart will use to purchase books.
“We want to ramp up real quick and get books in their hands,” Jones said. “We want those kids to be able to read.”
BookSmart is also working with the Rotary Club of Morgan Hill to pair books with food when elementary school students pick up their lunches at delivery sites on local campuses.
While BookSmart is giving back to those in need, it is in need of help itself.
Jones said the bookstore had to let go of its three part-time staff, leaving himself and Meister to split the hours of operation.
The bookstore remains open, although with limited hours and only allows one person or family in at a time, as Meister provides notary public services in the store, which the county defines as an “essential service” under the shelter-in-place order.
“We’re definitely on a ventilator,” Jones said. “We want to be here to help people.”
BookSmart provides free delivery within three miles of the store, or a small fee if located farther. While the store has always offered the service, it wasn’t utilized as much as it is now, and Jones, who said making delivery runs allows him to get out of the store and meet people, admitted that it’s “kind of fun, actually.”
The store’s website has also picked up, receiving about two or three purchases a day as of late, whereas before it might have gotten one or two every month, according to Jones.
BookSmart, which is nearing a quarter-century of business, moved to its current 1,500-square-foot spot a little more than a year ago after a downtown location that “basically destroyed us financially,” Jones said.
“Our landlord here is amazing,” he said. “He’s helped us every step of the way and I couldn’t ask for more.”
With that help and relatively small living expenses, Jones is hopeful for the store’s future.
“It’s been a hard slog to try to keep the doors open,” he said. “If we didn’t have help from our landlord, we wouldn’t still be here.”
To purchase books, or to make a donation to BookSmart, visit mybooksmart.indielite.org or call 408.778.6467.
