As of June 3rd,
we will once again be open for browsing!
We have had to make a lot of adjustments in deference to the virus, so
please be patient with us as we get used to all of them along with you.
Our store hours for the time being will
be:
Monday-Friday 12pm-9pm
Saturday 10am-10pm
Sunday Closed
A few quick
notes. Masks will be required to be on
and pulled up from the moment you walk in the door. You will need to check-in and out with us at
the counter (whether you are purchasing anything or not), because we need to
keep a head count. If there are more
than 25 human beings in the store at any given time, we may ask you to wait
outside or come back later.
We can no
longer check bags behind the counter, so our strong preference would be that
you don’t have anything larger than a purse with you when you arrive. We do
have another solution, but it is not secure and would be at your own risk.
We will
provide hand sanitizer and gloves. We
ask that you use one or the other – or both – on your way in and on your way
out.
Sorry – we will not be buying any books as of
yet. Please don’t bring them with
you. Nor will we be mylaring books for
customers. We will be adding those
services back in when we can figure out how to do them safely.
No public
restrooms will be available either. No
exceptions.
Other than
that, we are so excited to welcome you back.
We have missed you.
For those
who are not ready to spend time in any public spaces just yet, I am
re-iterating the ways that you can still interact with our books. We are happy to serve you remotely as well. So here, revised, are those guidelines:
·
- Any
book we have in stock can be ordered for pick up Monday-Friday between the
hours of noon-9pm, or Saturday between 10am-10pm. Just call us, and we can take your request
and credit card details over the phone.
We can also accept email requests, though we do not recommend sending
card details via email. You can still
use your store credit to buy as well.
Just verify your credit amount with us via phone or email before you
come in, so we can have your order ready to go when you arrive.
- Please
remember to wear your mask if you are picking up in-store. No one will be admitted without a mask.
- If
you are not comfortable going outside, delivery will be free to any destination
that is with-in walking distance.
Anywhere with-in a 15 minute drive carries a $5 fee. If the distance is greater, there will be a
$10 fee assessed.
- If
you need our recommendations, please don’t hesitate to ask us to browse the
store for you. We can pull books and
call you with options for whatever you are looking for. We can also email you photos of volumes we
have on our shelves if you want to see them before deciding. This might be especially helpful with our
second-hand volumes.
-
If
we don’t have it in stock, we can order it for you. Please bear in mind that some warehouses are
still closed or running with smaller crews, and that what is available changes
daily.
- If
you don’t want to wait for us to order it for you, you might consider visiting
our store on Bookshop.org (https://bookshop.org/shop/after-wordsbookstore).
We will get a commission for anything you buy from their website (a
bigger one if it is from one of our recommended lists). It is a site dedicated to supporting authors,
publishers, and independent booksellers.
So, unlike when you buy from other online retailers who shall remain
nameless, you are fully funding the authors and publishers of the books that
you buy. Not to mention supporting us as
well.
- As
always, we list about 15,000 of our used volumes on Biblio.com (https://www.biblio.com/bookstore/after-words-bookstore-chicago) so you can shop our store
there. You can also browse our store
there very specifically by topic.
- Finally,
for those who really miss browsing our stacks, we are experimenting with
virtual browsing via Zoom. We are
figuring out the technology still, so the first few of you to take us up on
this will be our guinea pigs. To take
advantage of this, you can book an appointment with one of our staff during our
store hours to browse for 30 minutes. We
can show you the sections, let you read the backs of the books, and generally
play host (we can provide suggestions or keep quiet – your choice). We will be charging $10 for this service to
anyone who does not make a purchase, $5 to anyone making a purchase under $20,
and anyone who purchases over $20 worth of books will have the fee waived.
We look forward to seeing you and
welcoming you back. Thanks for your
loyalty.
