PORTLAND, Maine —
As COVID-19 restrictions start to ease, a lot of local businesses are opening their doors to the public again, like Print: A Bookstore in Portland.
“It’s been a long 16 months that we were closed," co-owner Josh Christie said. "We closed the second week of March and going from there to opening back up it’s a big change, but we were ready, our staff was ready, our customers were ready, and it just feels great to have people in the store again."
The store is founded and owned by Christie and Emily Russo. Although they re-opened their bookstore on Wednesday for people to shop inside for books, they offered curbside pickup and shipping to customers during the pandemic.
Their business also kept a strong connection with the community by keeping in touch with schools and offering virtual events.
Christie was thankful for the support from locals through the pandemic, not just for his business, but for other independent bookstores that survived the pandemic, too.
“I think that bookstores are the lifeblood of a community, so seeing that Portland came together to support not just us but our colleagues at Sherman’s and Longfellow’s and Letterpress has really been spectacular,” Christie said.
Learn more about Print: A Bookshop's hours, the books they have in stock and more on their website.