My Biz: Owners stick to the basics at book shop

CEDAR RAPIDS - A love to read spurred Bobbie McLane and Donna Young to open their bookstore, Basically Books, in June 1990.

'There was nothing on the west side that was secondhand,” McLane said. 'The only other shops were on the east side and one up in Marion, so we thought we'd go ahead and do this thing.”

Basically Books sells used and new books to a faithful client base Young and McLane have cultivated over the past 26 years.

'We'd always partnered with Walden Books at Westdale Mall,” McLane said, 'and if we didn't have a book for a customer, we would call them to see if they could get it, and they would do the same back through us.”

Walden Books managers encouraged Young and McLane to start carrying more new books.

'We knew our mystery section and our general fiction section was going to have to grow, and we wanted to carry more new books as well,” she said.

After Walden Books closed its doors, customers continued to stream into Basically Books.

'It was a good working relationship,” McLane said.

The shop has tripled in size since opening, and today stocks 55,000 books. But none of the inventory is on a computer.

'We'll either be old and coo coo for Cocoa Puffs,” McLane said, laughing, 'or we'll be the sharpest old ladies you've ever seen.”

Instead of relying on the latest technology, Young and McLane maintain log sheets of what they have on hand, and reserve use of the store's solitary computer solely for looking up titles and authors.

'We also keep track of who orders what,” McLane said, 'and what kind of books they like.”

Their customers range from 80 year-old women reading Twilight and Harry Potter, to 60 year-old men who like to read romance novels. Teens also shop at Basically Books.

'It's amazing to me that some of these kids come in and tell us they are on something digital all day at school or at their part-time jobs and they just want to sit down and read a book,” McLane said, grinning.

McLane credits Midwest culture for her customers' love of books.

'Things are a little slower paced here as compared to life on the coasts,” she said. 'I think people in the larger cities lead such a fast-paced hectic lifestyle.”

'We live differently here in the Midwest, and I think our kids still see that there is a positive to that.”

AT A GLANCE

Owners: Bobbie McLane and Donna Young

Company: Basically Books

Address: 212 Edgewood Rd NW, Cedar Rapids

Phone: (319) 396-8420

l Know a company in business for more than a year that would make an ideal My Biz? Contact Francie Williamson at francie.williamson@thegazette.com