Community Corner
Bookstore Closes After 16-Month Run
Spirit of '76² was the second bookstore to close at 450 Paradise Road.
First a chain bookstore closed its doors at 450 Paradise Road.
Now an independent store's run has ended.
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Spirit of '76² opened to enthusiasm in the fall of 2011. Customers were glad to see a replacement for the Borders Express that closed three months earlier at the same location.
On St. Patrick's Day, HugoBooks Inc. closed Spirit of '76², according to a notice on the store's door and confirmation from an employee at the independent booksellers' Marblehead location, the Salem News reported today.
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“While we regret having to make the difficult decision to close this location, we are excited to focus our energy and resources on our three remaining, long-standing bookstores,” owner John Hugo said in the notice.
“We are very optimistic about the future of independent bookstores, and are looking forward to a fantastic spring and summer.”
The family-owned HugoBooks, which was established in 1965, has three stores, Spirit of ’76 in Marblehead, The Book Rack in Newburyport and Andover Bookstore, the second-oldest continually operating bookstore in America, the Salem News reported.
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