Princeton has always had an independent bookstore. Since 2006, Labyrinth Books has filled the needs of both the university and the community, and its innovative approach may offer a model for other struggling outlets. 

Labyrinth is Princeton University’s official partner, offering course books at 30% to students and giving discounts to faculty. The store is next door to the University store  on the town’s main thoroughfare and attracts its share of weekend browsers. The store is organized “so you can find what you didn't know you were looking for," according to the website. There is no coffee shop and products like mugs, bookmarks, and calendars are kept to a minimum. Labyrinth is about browsing and book acquisition.

Events at Labyrinth are co-sponsored by organizations like the Princeton Public Library (itself a significant cultural presence in the community), the Princeton Research Forum, and  McCarter Theater, to name a few.  It also features Princeton area-writers, be they established or less well-known.  The owners believe these partnerships enable Labyrinth to “keep questions of social justice as well as the viability of the arts at the forefront of our concerns."  

Labyrinth is supported by its nationally recognized scholarly book wholesaler, Great Jones Books. The warehouse not far from Princeton in Pennington, New Jersey that carries more than 50,000+ titles at discounted prices.

Looking ahead, the owners hope to acquire a print-on-demand machine (called the espresso machine), to produce books in the public domain, per-copy self-published books and soon, they hope, current titles. Says Labyrinth owner Dorothea von Moltke with obvious enthusiasm: “This would mean we would never have to say to a customer that we don't have a book. Instead, we'd tell them: give me 2 minutes."

Books on demand: the Labyrinth model. 

Labyrinth Books
122 Nassau Street
Princeton, NJ 08540
www.labyrinthbooks.com

top image: en.wikipedia.org