Founder of Black Bookstore Now Owns Her Philadelphia Building

Harriett’s Bookshop, the black-owned business named after Harriet Tubman, has found a everlasting home in Philadelphia.

The founder of the shop, Jeanine A. Cook, he talked in regards to the trip to becoming a business owner and property owner. Cook opened the shop in 2020 and started trying to buy the constructing it’s in two years later.

But it wasn’t until Aug. 6 that Cook became the owner of 258 E. Girard Ave. The four-story constructing within the Fishtown neighborhood was a community investment, and Cook raised money for a down payment through GoFundMe.

“I’m still in shock,” Cook said. he said “I’m so excited that people are excited. I hope it ignites faith in people to go forward with their dreams. It’s really about putting one foot in front of the other.”

Her decision to speculate in real estate got here from a way of “leasehold” over renting an area. She felt the necessity to own property after seeing other black-owned businesses close attributable to rising rent costs.

“I couldn’t get the feeling out of my head that I was a sharecropper,” Cook explained. “I had a vision of something different, but I didn’t know how to make it happen.”

Initially, the lease was intended to be utilized by Cook to open a consulting firm. But her changing passions led to the creation of Harriett’s Bookshop, which expanded beyond a bookstore to grow to be a community gathering space.

Cook has proven that she and Harriett’s Bookshop have been vital figures locally, from riding horses to deliver books throughout the pandemic to donating books to protesters in Minneapolis and Louisville at the peak of the Black Lives Matter movement.

In addition, Cook initiated a Sisterhood Sit-In Trolley Tour in town to advertise businesses owned by black women who’ve suffered racist threats. She also owns two other bookstores, including Ida’s in Collingswood, New Jersey, named for Ida B. Wells. The other, Josephine’s in Paris, pays tribute to the legacy of Josephine Baker.

But her growing presence in Philadelphia prompted others to purchase your entire constructing. She scraped together $200,000 to secure a down payment and later gained the trust of the previous owner to sell her the property.

“Harriett’s has been a gallery up until now,” said Cook, who has also begun renovations to incorporate a café. “This next version will feel more like home.”

Now a shared hub and fixture in the local people, Harriett’s Bookshop will proceed to be a protected space for all who work for education, literature and equality.