Volumes Bookcafe, an independent bookstore in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood, is asking for community support via this IndieGoGo campaign in order to pay off its debts and survive its third year.
If you support Volumes, we’ll give you a free three-year membership to the Chicago Review of Books. Just email us your IndieGoGo receipt.
“We started Volumes with the mission to bring a bookstore and community space to Chicago’s Wicker Park,” say the bookstore’s owners, Kimberly and Rebecca George. “We are very proud of what we’ve built. However, we have hit a hurdle and in order for us to stay in our current location, we need your help.”
Rewards for IndieGoGo supporters include Volumes swag, manuscript consultations from Chicago authors, StoryStudio Chicago classes for writers, books from Coffee House Press and Graywolf Press, as well as personalized book recommendations, signed books, and even skype sessions with dozens of local authors.
“In order for us to continue to bring the unique programming to the community and keep our bookstore running another year, we need help,” the Georges say. “We need your contributions to help pay off the excessive debt we took on to tackle the unexpected add-ons the city required when we opened. It has been very difficult to run a successful bookstore with a functioning cash flow when we have a great deal of $ paying off space improvements. This also helps to pay back our amazing landlord, who has helped in the first two years of our opening. Our debt is hurting our ability to function. We really need help moving forward if we’re going to stay open.”
I honestly can’t imagine Chicago without Volumes at this point. It hosts more than 300 free literary events per year, including the Chicago Review of Books Awards every December, and our annual Halloween Affaire. It is a boon for hundreds of Chicago writers, poets, and readers. As one the largest venues for literary events in the city, it has become an irreplaceable part of Chicago arts and culture.
If you can, please help.
Which email address should I forward my IndieGoGo receipt to receive the membership?
Hi Jared, it’s chireviewofbooks (at) gmail (dot) com