It looks like Birmingham is loosing another indie bookstore. After almost six years in business and just weeks after setting up their Twitter feed, Linda Brown has sent out a very sincere and personal note about plans to close Milestone Books or at best, let it change hands. I have pasted her message, in its entirety below:

Dear Milestone Friends,

This is a difficult email to send y’all.  Around six years ago, a dream turned into  a reality, and Milestone Books opened right here in Vestavia Hills.  An independent bookstore for independent thinkers.. a community of intelligent, highly educated, upper middle class people.  This community had asked for a bookstore for years!  And we brought one here.  We have become a Partner in Education with the Vestavia Hills School System, a proud member of the Vestavia Hills Chamber of Commerce, and a valued contributor to our local economy.  You have told us so often how happy you are that we are here, and we value your loyalty and patronage.  And we’ve been successful on many levels, even ending 2009 profitably after enduring a severe economic downturn in late 2007 and 2008.

But now my personal circumstances have changed and I’ve been offered a position with a progressive, growing company here in Birmingham.  This job will allow me to be a little more available for my 16 year old twins, who only remember Mommy working at the bookstore.  For those of you who may own a small business, you know that doing so requires a 24/7 commitment, and all the blood, sweat, and tears you imagine.  But not many people can love what they do every day….and that’s one thing I’ll miss.

So.  If you’re down the road of life a little further than me…here’s your chance.  The first five years of any business are the toughest.  Done.  I’m offering my loyal customers an opportunity to take this little bookstore to the next level.  If I could stay, trust me when I say I would.  But responsibilities as a parent often require a choice…and anyone with children will understand when I admit that right now, this option is the right one for us.

This window of opportunity is small.  So if you are interested acquiring the assets of Milestone Books, or the business itself, please let me know by the 17th.  If no one steps up by then, we will begin an Inventory Clearance beginning January 18th.
Thank you for your patronage, your encouragement, your prayers, but most of all…thank you for helping me live a dream, if only for a little while.

Linda Brown
Milestone Books, Inc.

This is such a shame. The Milestone Books crew love books and the people that buy them. I do hope someone will step into that space and keep things going. We’ll see.