Business & Tech

RiverRun Bookstore Saved

Owner Tom Holbrook says the store will be moving to its new downtown location after signing a letter of intent.

Two weeks ago, RiverRun Bookstore owner Tom Holbrook painted a grim picture for hundreds of Portsmouth area residents who attended a community forum intent on saving the Congress Street business.

Without a sizable investment to pay down its debt, Holbrook said the store would have to close at the end of the year.

This morning, Holbrook announced that RiverRun Bookstore has been saved and will move to its new downtown location after signing a letter of intent. He did not say where the new RiverRun Bookstore will be located, but during the public forum on Nov. 9 he indicated that it would be on Fleet Street. In an e-mail he sent to his supporters (including Portsmouth Patch), Holbrook wrote:

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

"I'm excited to say that we have signed a letter of intent, and will soon sign a lease, for a new retail space downtown. It will be within two blocks of our current location, and will save us over $50,000 a year in occupancy costs!! It is hard to imagine a better outcome in this area.

"On the finances side of things, more than a dozen people have come forward and offered to become part-owners of RiverRun, and dozens more have donated books and money to the cause.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

"I believe we will have the financing deals wrapped up by the end of November! This means new and exciting books will be flooding into the store in the first week of December, maybe sooner!"

Holbrook said the store will be open on Black Friday at 9 a.m., but added the store will not be fully stocked right away.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here