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The Bookshop Podcast
The Bookshop Podcast
Turning Pages and Building Community: Celebrating Sunshine Book Company's Story With Owner Beth Merrick
Nestled within the heart of Claremont's historic district, Sunshine Book Company gleams with the charm of its 1915 architecture—a setting almost as enchanting as the tales it houses. As the shop celebrates its third anniversary, I'm joined by the effervescent Beth, who shares the serendipitous journey that brought her from the world of Disney to the intimate aisles of this beloved local haven.
Our dialogue strolls through the picturesque streets of this vibrant town, pausing to savor tales of its historic downtown and the cultural tapestry that now flutters brightly in the Floridian breeze. We then pivot to a candid discussion about the enriching diversity of literature that graces Sunshine Book Company's shelves, mirroring the town's evolving demographic. Literature lovers, local business supporters, and everyone in between will find something to cherish in this episode—a heartfelt homage to the power of stories and the sanctuaries that preserve them. Join me and Beth as we celebrate community, history, and the sheer delight of losing oneself in a good book.
Sunshine Book Co.
A Wild and Heavenly Place, Robin Oliveira
Hi, my name is Mandy Jackson-Beverly and I'm a bibliophile. Welcome to the Bookshop Podcast. Each week, I present interviews with authors, independent bookshop owners and booksellers from around the globe, publishing professionals and specialists in subjects dear to my heart the environment and social justice. To help the show reach more people, please share episodes with friends and family and on social media, and remember to subscribe and leave a review wherever you listen to this podcast. To financially support the show, go to thebookshoppodcastcom, click on support the show and you can donate through.
Speaker 1:Buy Me a Coffee. Okay, a little bit of local news. Coming up at the Lunch with an Author literary series at El Encanto in Santa Barbara, california, we have the following authors joining us. I hope you can join us too. On Tuesday May 7th, I'll be in conversation with Emily Franklin about her new book the Lioness of Boston. Tuesday June 4th, our guest author is TC Boyle and he will be talking about his book Blue Skies. Tuesday July 2nd, I'll be in conversation with Annie Barrows about her book the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. On Tuesday August 6, I'll be in conversation with Stephen Raleigh about his new book the Guncle Abroad. And Tuesday September 3, I'll be in conversation with Northern Irish author Jan Carson about her book Quickly While they Still have Horses. Tuesday October 1st, I'll be in conversation with Dani Shapiro about her book Signal Fires. Tuesday, november 12th, I'll be in conversation with Gillian Flynn about her book Dark Places. And on Tuesday December 3rd I'll be in conversation with Dawn Tripp about her new novel, jackie. These events do require prepayment and reservation, so please call the concierge at area code 805-845-5800 and make your reservation. I hope to see you there.
Speaker 1:Okay, now let's get on with the show. You're listening to episode 250. The show You're listening to, episode 250. Sunshine Book Company is located in the heart of Claremont's downtown historic district in the sunny state of Florida. Sunshine Book Company is a local independent bookstore operated by Florida natives and longtime residents, the Merrick family, who serve their community by fostering a love of reading. They provide everything from the new release bestseller you've been anxious to read to your favorite classics that you've read over and over. The staff at Sunshine Book Company are happy to find what you're looking for, along with some interesting and fun literary gifts to go along with it. Hi, beth, and welcome to the show. It's lovely to have you here.
Speaker 2:Hi, good morning Mandy. Thank you so much for having me. It's great to meet you.
Speaker 1:Thank you, it's good to meet you too.
Speaker 2:Your podcast was one of the first book-related podcasts I started listening to years ago, and so this was such an honor to get to meet you and talk with you today, well, thank you, you've made my day.
Speaker 1:Let's begin with learning about you and what you were doing before opening Sunshine Book Company.
Speaker 2:Yes, so we have been open. Now we're about to celebrate our three-year anniversary, so we're very excited about that. But yes, there was life before bookstore, for sure, and so it was, you know, kind of you know just the day to day life of raising children and family and all the commitments you know that we all are a part of. But as far as career wise goes, I have worked at the Walt Disney Company for almost 31 years and so I was working at Disney and you know this was kind of pandemic time and you know we were kind of curious about what the future would hold and what were we going to do, you know, if we did not kind of resume you know, our beautiful theme parks as we hoped, and so we started kind of thinking about you know what's plan B and what will we do. You know what if things change a little bit more than we expect them to?
Speaker 2:And my family and I have always been avid readers and we would visit, you know, bookstores when we were traveling and things like that. And so you know, when you're visiting, you're kind of you know those. Well, what if? And you know, wouldn't it be cool if we could open a store like this and things like that. So I had always worked in kind of that hospitality industry and guest service and things like that. So we kind of were presented with that time of hey, here's some potential opportunities. And, as I think a lot of people did, you know, we were kind of thinking about things in a different way maybe and making decisions that we may not have been able to make in the past. And I did end up returning to Disney and I'm very fortunate to get to do a little bit of both right now, but the long-term plan is to get to do the bookstore full-time. So that will be kind of the transition plan and things. But yes, so I have had a wonderful career that I've enjoyed at Disney pre-bookstore time.
Speaker 1:Having been in hospitality on and off since I was about 16, and also being on a film set as part of the crew, I think both of those professions lead very well into book selling and owning a bookshop, because you have to be a team player and you have to like people. There's no two ways about it. You have to like being with people and conversing with people, and when you're front of house in hospitality and when you're on a film crew as part of the set on stage, it's really hard work. It is.
Speaker 2:It is, yes, but we love our audience and we love our guests and that's definitely, you know, the heart of the business for sure.
Speaker 1:Yes, exactly Now, while I was researching Sunshine Book Company, I fell in love with the building that you're in and I believe it was built around 1915. And then, when I got a little wider, it seems like you're in a historic neighborhood. So can you tell us a little bit about the area? And I was wondering has your building, or the house you're in, always been a home, or was it previously a business?
Speaker 2:Yes, we were so fortunate to stumble upon. You know you kind of talk about timing or fate, you know, and, and we really were just so fortunate, I had looked at many different other properties and kind of been scouting locations and we had kind of everything ready to go from the business side, but we needed a location and so there was a lot of thought put into that and I have been I've been a resident of our Claremont community for just over 21 years and so you know I definitely saw value to, you know, the community and we loved our historic downtown and I had checked some other locations that had not panned out and literally drove by this building one day and saw a sign out front that it was available and I was just shocked. So it had been an art studio most recently prior to us and then it had become available, and so prior to that and then it had become available, and so prior to that it was a home and had kind of gone through different owners and different forms of residents living there. We've actually had a few people that had lived in the home before that have stopped by to let us know that they had lived there, which was really fun.
Speaker 2:But it's very historic, very quaint. We are right there in the kind of what is considered our downtown Main Street community, and so there is a lot of history there, and we are designated as a downtown community and so you know a Main Street designation. The original owners, though, that built the house built it it was the Cooper family, and they have a lot of history in the community and things, but our library is actually named Cooper Memorial Library and after the Cooper family, and so I love the connection with the books and I hope that they are proud of what their little home has turned out to be.
Speaker 1:And do you have the upstairs as well as the downstairs?
Speaker 2:We do. Yes, the upstairs we aren't able to utilize for retail. It is not compliant as far as accessibility guidelines go. So it's more storage and personal use, but we do have that space as well, which is really nice.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's nice for your staff to have somewhere they can go and drink their cup of coffee or have their lunch. Tell me about some of your favorite bookish events you've held at the store, because you seem to have quite a few.
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh, I would say. You know, people can buy books in a variety of places, so it's definitely the events and activities and the ways that we're able to connect with the community and bring something unique and fun, you know, for people to be able to enjoy books in different ways. And so I would say that the events and activities are probably one of my favorite parts of getting to operate a bookstore, and so we've hosted a variety of different author events and so we've been able to host, for example, jenny Meyer Sane was with us last week. She has a new book and it was a launch and it takes place at a Florida Springs, and so we were able to, you know, kind of make that connection and definitely had a lot of local interest and things, and so it was exciting to be part of her book tour and things. And then we had we hosted Kristen Harmel a few weeks ago and we were able to have an event, you know, in the backyard and, you know, with it being Florida, we can do those things sometimes. And so, you know, we had a really nice conversation and we had we had a mimosa bar and guests could enjoy, you know, refreshments and things while they were there, and so she was so kind to spend some time with us and sign books and answer questions and she and I had a great, you know kind of discussion and guests could answer questions or ask her questions and things as well. And so author events are really, you know, fun to bring exposure and connection and be able to share. You know, different types of stories and things you know bring light to a lot of different authors that people may not always be aware of and things. So I love that the last few months we started hosting some school spirit nights. So I don't know if they do that in your area or not, but a lot of the local schools will host, like at a restaurant, for example, and you know a percentage of the proceeds. If you go and get dinner there at that restaurant that night, you know percentage of the proceeds go back to the school. And so we said, hey, why can't we do that with books as well? And so so we've been able to partner with a few of the local schools and host spirit nights, and so you know it's great because it gives the kids, you know, a really you know something tangible that they can take home and enjoy and they can get out to their local bookstore and be able to see their teacher or their principal or something like that, you know, in a different setting. And then we provide, you know, a percentage of the proceeds back to the school from the sales that evening. So that's been a lot of fun.
Speaker 2:We do host a variety of book clubs as well. So we have some general community book clubs and then also a horror genre book club which has turned out to be very popular and is a lot of fun. So, you know, finding those ways to kind of connect with people's interests and such. The Claremont Literary Society meets at the bookstore once a month and we've really gotten to know them very well. They've become some of my good friends and we really enjoy our conversations with them. We do a Cooking with Sunshine cookbook club, which is really fun, and so we have a themed cookbook and we've done it kind of on a quarterly basis right now, and so everyone buys the same cookbook and then you sign up for recipes within the cookbook so that you have a good variety not everyone's making the same dish and then we all get together and we talk about why we picked that recipe or what we liked about the recipe and things, and then we all dine and enjoy, you know, that time together and so we've really enjoyed that.
Speaker 2:We've hosted a book swap. Most recently we hosted a baby shower. The couple were big readers and fans and they had asked their guests to purchase some books to kind of build the baby library. And it was a Harry Potter theme and so you know, there were wonderful decorations and themed food and games and so it was kind of a private event, you know, for them. But people are so creative and you can come up with so many different ideas and things. So that's a lot of what we've enjoyed recently.
Speaker 1:You have some fabulous ideas. I particularly love the idea of the cooking event. That's fantastic.
Speaker 2:It's a lot of fun.
Speaker 1:I'm going to veer off books for a moment and talk about the area where you live, because when I look at images of Claremont, it seems flat and while it's not on the coast, it's in Lake County and surrounded by pockets of water. In recent years, have you been threatened by hurricanes and flooding and, if so, what is the state of Florida doing to help keep the area safe from climate change related disasters?
Speaker 2:So it's funny because the photos must be kind of deceiving because it is actually a very hilly area. Now, not like you see in California mountains and things, but it is a very hilly area and people are always amazed when they come from out of town and things that they see these hills, because the majority of Florida is very flat, but we are called the gem of the hills and that's one of our kind of town taglines is the gem of the hills, and so it is actually very hilly. So we need to work on our photos and get some of those out that are a little bit more accurate about the structure and kind of the format of it. So but it is very much in central Florida so you can kind of go an hour each way, you know, to get to a beach or a coastline area. We are just northwest of Orlando.
Speaker 2:So a lot of times people know Orlando on the map or they've come to Disney or things like that. So we're kind of in the northwest part of Orlando and so so we're not necessarily near a coastline but we're not. You know, we're no strangers to hurricanes because, as you can see, you know, hurricanes can cross land masses and things, and hurricanes have definitely been, you know, a part of Florida forever, I think. You know people kind of have these images and of course, you know the media kind of shares all of this information about hurricanes as they are traveling, because you can, you know, now with science and data you can kind of track the hurricanes and so we do have a hurricane season and so I would say you know a lot of what we see as far as support, you know, from government and things like that is along the lines of communication and so it is that preparation. So you know when it's very extreme, you know there's sandbags and there's, you know, evacuation centers and things like that. So, being in Central Florida, there are locations where people can evacuate to. They might repurpose a school, for example, to be a shelter for people in the area that need to seek higher ground or need to come inland or something like that, and so there's a lot of safety protocols. There's different stages of the hurricane, kind of severity and things like that, and so we do receive a lot of information. As far as hurricane and disaster preparedness, I mean, they're definitely it's unavoidable as far as being able to eliminate a hurricane, but they're closely monitored. Safety is definitely a priority for sure.
Speaker 2:On the coastal communities you probably see a lot more of, for example, protection from beach erosion or, you know, flooding, things like that. So there is a lot of thought put into how do we maintain, you know, the environments for sea animals, for example, and so you've got to. You know it's that struggle of we need to protect the humans, you know. So sometimes there's a seawall. You know that might kind of help from erosion and protect from flooding, but you have to do so in a manner that does not disrupt the ecosystem, you know, for the animal life in the area and things as well. So I'd say we don't see it as much here because we're so far inland, but along those coastal regions they definitely have a lot more of the work that they do there.
Speaker 2:We've suffered damage, you know we've incurred some damage personally, like in our home. You know people lose roofs, for example, or you know things like that, and so there is protection there and repairs and such. At the bookstore, we lost a really big tree in a hurricane in 2022. And it was so ironic though, because the tree, the direction that it fell, was actually away from any cars, the building, I mean, if we were going to lose the tree, it fell in exactly the right place, if that makes sense, and so we were able to utilize that wood, you know, but we did lose the tree. So there's things like that that we see, but not as much as far as what you might see in the news or on the coastlines and things like that. But the bookstore, being built in 1915, you know, you always say they don't build things like they used to the bookstore itself has proven to be very sturdy and has protected all of our people and our beautiful books and things, so we have been very lucky in that regard.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think any state in the US, well, anywhere in the world is going to suffer, if not already suffering, from climate related disasters.
Speaker 2:Yes, for sure, they definitely need to heed the. You know if you're in the area, you know if there are major storm activity and things. You know we do get alerts and notifications and it's very closely monitored by the hurricane teams, and so it is definitely something that people should pay attention to, for sure.
Speaker 1:Yes, definitely. Now what would you say to encourage anyone with a few days in Orlando to visit Claremont? Regarding hiking, water sports on Lake Mineola, restaurants and independent businesses such as Sunshine Book Company?
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh, we have such a really unique opportunity and you know Disney and Central Florida and Orlando area is definitely a destination, you know, and so you know we see international visitors and you know people from all over come to enjoy all of that and we enjoy all of those activities and things as well. But as far as Claremont specifically goes, it's very accessible coming and going to Orlando. So there are easily navigatable, you know, highway systems. We're right off of the Turnpike, so there's the Florida Turnpike that kind of runs through the state and other major locations. It's a very easy drive so it's very accessible. But you know we were talking about us being the gem of the hills. Our other tagline is the choice of champions and so, um, um, so you know, sports and recreation is definitely a major focus and, um, you know, we have training facilities. We're accessible to boat and bike rentals, um, you know there's many miles of and in fact there is a trail project that runs across central Florida from coast to coast and Claremont happens to be kind of the very center of that trail project. So it's kind of a cool distinction there state parks and camping opportunities and things as well. If people enjoy those types of activities.
Speaker 2:There's some really beautiful restaurants and dining options along the lakes as well, and so, you know, if you're looking for something uniquely Florida, you know, to be able to dine outside on a lake and watch a beautiful sunset, you know, that's just that's an experience a lake and watch a beautiful sunset you know, that's just that's an experience in itself. There's several golf courses in the area and you know we have a very favorable climate, of course. So we I kind of touched on it a little bit but our bookstore is located right in the historic downtown Main Street District and so where we are we enjoy a few blocks of some amazing restaurants and there's breweries and bars and boutiques, and so we have a lot of really wonderful, you know, neighbors that we get to kind of enjoy in our community. Our Main Street does host some pretty regular events. So we have wine strolls monthly, a farmer's market weekly, and then we host a few signature annual events as well.
Speaker 2:So different festivals and activities and things. We just had an Irish festival this past weekend, for example, and so that brings a lot of people to the area and those, if you time it, you can be there and enjoy some of those different activities and things. So we love to partner with our local neighbors and things. So it's very walkable, it's quaint, it's a really unique and easy area to get around and kind of step away and enjoy more of. I would say more of kind of the true essence and kind of natural Florida, rather than what you see in the heart, of kind of the true essence and kind of natural Florida rather than what you see in the heart of you know kind of a tourist district.
Speaker 1:Yes, I read that Claremont is known as the choice of champions and has a long standing reputation for fostering world class athletes and sporting events, so I'd love to hear about some of the athletes from Claremont and, of course, your beautiful National Training Center.
Speaker 2:Yes, so we do have a National Training Center and although not all of the athletes are always residents, we do have a lot of residents or people native to the area. It does attract people because of climate. They can train year round, especially for sports like swimming and track. We get a lot of track and field and swimming and those types of sports so, but then we do have others as well. I was kind of thinking about. We have jet skiing, competitions on the lakes and things, and so that attracts kind of you know, some professional jet skiers, for example. And Brandy Johnson does have a gymnasium. She is an Olympic gymnast and she has a gymnasium that's been there for several years at the National Training Center and so we do host those. Dot Richardson is probably a pretty famous Olympian. She was a softball Olympic athlete, so she does a lot in the area. Some have been college and professional sports and things too. Drew Mendoza, for example, is a local resident that grew up in the area and went on to play baseball up at Florida State University and then on to some semi-pros. But we also have had some other, jason Couch, a famous in the bowling community, and people come here a lot to train, but they they don't always, you know, live here permanently, but we do have a lot of great training facilities and things. And then we're actually there is a community under construction that's called Olympus, and so Olympus is going to actually bring a lot more of that to the area, and so it is going to have medical options, wellness facilities, as well as training and competition facilities as well. So it will cover it. It's kind of unique because they will have a lot of these that I mentioned, but they will also have some that we are looking for in the area, like hockey. So you don't always associate hockey, you know, with Central Florida, but there will be a hockey facility there as well. So there will. There will be places where there will be competitions but where you know where you can go and actually view and enjoy you know the competitive sports and things as well. So it will definitely continue to increase. You know kind of that focus on being the choice of champions, and so we're really excited about that.
Speaker 2:So there's a lot of triathlons in the area as well. So we have a couple of local businesses that run. Their businesses are running activities. So there are some on the trails, there are some that are lakeside waterfront competitions, but where we are positioned, triathlons work out perfect because they can do the biking trails, the swimming and the running, and so it's a really ideal location to host. You know some of those types of competitions and things as well. So triathlons and running, I would say, are a lot of big, and then we have even a sports store there, you know, as part of our downtown community, and so you know they facilitate. You know that interest and those guests you know that visit the area as well, so we can be competitive in all of those and support you know those athletes that visit the area as well, so we can be competitive in all of those and support those athletes that are visiting.
Speaker 1:And what about Claremont's demographics? Is it a graying community, a family community, multi-generational, ethnically diverse?
Speaker 2:Yeah. So I would say, you know, kind of thinking about the demographics, I would say, personally, the best way I would describe it is growing, and so so we have retirement communities but we also have growing schools and you know we're we're building schools and kind of see that as well. We have families but then we also have a growing young adult community and so you know there's that population as well. So it has kind of the charm of a small town but it's so appealing that people are finding it, you know, a great place to move to. And so we're seeing, you know, more awareness and focus on attracting, you know, more diverse populations, as we see we've started to host more ethnic festivals, for example, and we've seen more food vendors.
Speaker 2:You know that kind of focus on a specific, you know demographic there. As far as interest in, you know, different types of foods and things. So we have, you know, indian and you know, caribbean food groups and things like that. So it's really interesting to see when those restaurants open, because you know that they're there, because we now have, you know, more of this diversity in the community. So we definitely strive to to provide more of our book selections as well, you know, to appeal to that and to be able to encourage you know, interest and growth. You know for some of those different diversity you know in our populations.
Speaker 1:It's important because every child deserves to be able to go to a library, into a school, into a bookshop and see themselves reflected on the shelves, whether this be their ethnic diversity, their sexual diversity and whether they have a disability. When we see ourselves on the shelves of a bookstore or the library or in school, it helps us know we're not alone. Okay, while we're on the subject of books, what are you currently reading?
Speaker 2:Okay, while we're on the subject of books, what are you currently reading? So I am currently reading. So I typically have kind of a hard book. You know that I have on my nightstand that I that I pick up and take around with me and things. And then I love audiobooks. So I don't know how many of the listeners hopefully, if they're podcast listeners, they probably listen to a lot of audiobooks as well. So you know, we have access to library books through Libby and then also, you know, we love Libro FM as well. So those are great resources for audio listening as well.
Speaker 2:So I just started the Women by Kristen Hanna, and I love historical fiction genre, but I'm excited to see that this is kind of a different, you know, period in history and thinking about it being Women's History Month and being able to kind of enjoy something related to that. So I just started that. I know that she has received a lot of buzz around that book right now, so it'll be great to be able to talk to that and share that, you know, with interested readers. And then on audio, I'm listening to Yellowface by RF Quang and I'm so fascinated because have you read either? Have you read Yellowface?
Speaker 1:I'm about to dive into Yellowface. I'm a little behind on my reading.
Speaker 2:Okay, good, good. And I love the fact that you know it's a particular interest, I would say because of the focus on authors and publishers and agents. And you know she does visit some bookstores, you know, during her publicity time, and so it's fascinating to kind of have a little glimpse into that aspect of the industry and, of course, being able to look at it from our perspective of being a bookseller. I just find all of that so interesting and I'm enjoying both of those at the moment.
Speaker 1:Well, because you like historical fiction, I'm going to recommend a book I recently read. It's by Robin Oliveira, and the book is called A Wild and Heavenly Place. It is beautiful.
Speaker 2:I'm going to add it to my TBR.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like you really need another book to add to your list, right, Beth? It's been great chatting with you. I wish you ongoing success with Sunshine Book Company and for our listeners. Where can they find you, both online and in person?
Speaker 2:Yes, so thank you so much. I've enjoyed the conversation as well, and we are located at 647 Lake Avenue, which I love because we're part of Lake County, so in Claremont Florida, and so we are on social media Facebook and Instagram, occasionally TikTok, we try to keep up with the trends and things here and there, but primarily Facebook and Instagram. So it's under Sunshine Book Co for Facebook and Instagram. We do have a website, so sunshinebookcocom, and we keep an events calendar there. You know our mission is listed there, what's going on at the shop and what we're reading and all of those fun things as well. So I know not everyone does social media, so we try to keep the website up to date as well and be able to reach people in different ways. So that would be a great way to connect and we love to have new followers and to engage with audiences on social media. I try to stay pretty active on social media.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I recommend your website. It's wonderful, nice and clear. Beth, thanks again for being on the show.
Speaker 2:Thank you and come visit us in Florida anytime. Okay, it was a pleasure speaking with you. Thanks for your time today.
Speaker 1:You've been listening to my conversation with Beth Merrick, co-owner of Sunshine Book Company, located in Claremont, Florida. To find out more about the Bookshop Podcast, go to thebookshoppodcastcom and make sure to subscribe and leave a review wherever you listen to the show. You can also follow me at Mandy Jackson Beverly on X, Instagram and Facebook and on YouTube at the Bookshop Podcast. If you have a favorite indie bookshop that you'd like to suggest we have on the podcast, I'd love to hear from you via the contact form at thebookshoppodcastcom. The Bookshop Podcast is written and produced by me, Mandy Jackson-Beverly, Theme music provided by Brian Beverly, executive assistant to Mandy, Adrian Otterhan and graphic design by Francis Verala. Thanks for listening and I'll see you next time.