Lehi Business
Shopping small: Utah County’s own bookshop crawl
Eight independent bookstores have collaborated to bring residents the first ever Utah County Bookstore Crawl. Taking place from Nov. 29 through Dec. 7, book lovers have an opportunity to visit eight bookstores and pick up raffle tickets for a grand prize.
Created by Heidi Rowley at HideAway Books in American Fork, the bookstore crawl brings together both new and used book sellers for one event.
Rowley, who has owned HideAway Books for 7 years, has always thought a crawl would be fun, as she has seen it done with other industries, and even bookstores in other states. When Lagg Bookstore in Lehi and Planted in Pages in Provo opened on the same day in October, that was the final straw for her. It was time for a bookstore crawl. Luckily, all the other owners agreed.
“It’s so interesting how every indie bookstore does their own thing. We reach all kinds of people, but most importantly, we all reach readers. I thought this would be a really fun way to reach more readers and a cool way to say ‘hi’ to local bookshops,” shared Rowley.
Participating are The Book Box in Draper—while technically just outside Utah County, they started in Lehi and have a huge customer base in Utah County—Lagg Bookstore in Lehi, HideAway Books in American Fork, Mosaics Community Bookstore in Provo, Pioneer Book in Provo, Eborn Books in Provo, Planted in Pages in Provo, and Poppy Books & Gifts in Spanish Fork.
Participating in the crawl is easy. Pick up a bookmark from any participating store this week until Saturday, Dec. 7. At each store, get a stamp on your bookmark and receive a raffle ticket for the grand prize drawing, taking place on Dec. 9. No purchase necessary. Each store may have additional ways to receive additional raffle tickets. At the final store, get 5 additional raffle tickets for visiting all eight stores.
The grand prize is a mix of gift certificates and bookish items donated by each store. Cookies for a Cause is also donating a dozen Christmas cookies to the basket. The grand prize basket is on display at HideAway Books all week.
The crawl began on Black Friday, Nov. 29, as a reminder that shopping small is important, especially during the holidays. It ends on Dec. 7, which is Utah Author Day. HideAway Books, Pioneer Books and Book Box are each hosting authors as part of that day, sponsored by the League of Utah Writers.
While it’s to be determined whether this will become an annual event, the response and turnout so far has been positive. For more information, contact Heidi Rowley at 520-904-0369. Graphics for the event were created by Whitney Gallegos at Poppy Books & Gifts.
