DETROIT (WXYZ) — A beloved bookstore in southwest Detroit will keep its doors open, thanks to a lot of community love and support.
“We’re just really happy that we’re seen as a viable part of the literary community and that readers want us here," said co-owner Jazmine Cooper.
27th Letter Books has everything you'd expect from a bookstore, but also plenty of authors you might not see everywhere else.
“There’s a lot of diversity and inclusion in the titles that we choose," Cooper said.
During a tour of the store Saturday, Cooper showed off one of their latest featured titles by Jenny T. Wang, PhD called Permission to Come Home, which she said is growing in popularity.
"It's a book for Asian Americans reclaiming their mental health," she said. "There aren't a lot of books that allow Asian Americans to have mental health issues or to read about mental health issues."
The store focuses on diversity not just in the subjects of the titles they carry, but also in the authors they choose to showcase.
In late May, less than a year after opening its brick and mortar store, 27th Letter Books fell victim to online credit card fraud.
“Someone reached out, pretending to be a legitimate customer, and was ordering different books and established a relationship with us. And then we came to realize what had been ordered had been done using fraudulent cards," said fellow co-owner Erin Pineda.
The loss was more than $35,000, she said.
Detroit Police are currently investigating the case. Pineda said despite being insured, the store was still on the hook to pay its distributors.
For a small local business, the loss was enough to force a closure. So Pineda, Cooper and their partners started a Go Fund Me Page in hopes of making some of that money back.
What they received, blew them away.
“We were super thankful we reached that goal after 10 days, which was just so incredible," Pineda said.
More than $35,000 was raised by community members, eager to save the store. Much of the generosity coming in small increments of $10 or $15.
“We had someone I remember come in the store and they were like I just started a new job and I don’t have a ton of extra income to donate but can you share a flier and I’m going to do put it up at a couple different community spots for you," Pineda said.
The outpouring of support means the store will keep its doors open, and continue its programming as well, which includes weekly bilingual story-time for kids, events with local artists, open mic nights, and a book club.
Pineda said the store is reviewing its online ordering policies to make sure a headache like this never happens again. She advises other small business owners to do the same.
She also shares this advice:
“Don’t be afraid to ask for help and reach out to your communities. I don’t think we could have been able to get through this without all of that support.”
