Why we support #BuyLocal
I am sure many of you will agree with me when I say that one of the greatest pleasures of driving around in Australia, is being able to stop, browse and shop at the many locally owned stores that sell beautiful, unique and locally produced items. We find such stores all over Australia and fell in love with them on our many road trips around the country.
So, when we were starting Wise As Stories, Darren and I decided that if there was anyone we'd partner with to distribute our books and toys, it would be these local book, gift, toy and other independently owned stores.
We started developing our Buy Local directory the old fashioned way
Darren and I embarked on a series of roadtrips in our "Willow van". Yes, we'd simply rock up to on the doorsteps of cool indie bookshops we'd read about or other cool independent stores we encountered on our drive. We'd walk around the store, and if we liked the vibe, would request to speak to the owner and tell them our story!
Cold calling is scary but thankfully (most) people who run small independent shops tend to be the sort that don't mind a chat with travelling artisans selling their wares... And to our delight most of these good folks also took our books on, and some even generously paid for the stock upfront.
Their support has meant the world to us and we love profiling them to our community. You can shop at these places knowing that you are not only supporting your local community but also the good folks who support local authors and artists.
Checkout the latest additions to our Buy Local directory
Things are getting easier these days for Darren and I, as stores have begun to seek us out now. To this end, it gives us great pleasure to use this blog to update you on all the latest additions to our Buy Local directory where you can stock up on Willow the Wonderer picture books, the adorable Willow soft toy and even the premium gift sets.
We also love calling out some old faithfuls :) These are the book and gift stores who have recently restocked on the books - and where you can shop confidently knowing that they have the books in stock!
November 2023 Buy Local Update:
Welcome to Jeanne d'Moore, Moora Western Australia
Great news for all our WA customers, you can now purchase Willow the Wonderer locally, if you live around or are visiting Moora that is. This month we welcomed Jeanne d'Moore to our Buy Local directory!
Jeanne d’Moore is a Fashion, Gift and Homewares store with unique vintage French products and beautiful Australian designs to create a truly unique range. They also have an in-store Cafe that hand makes the best French-inspired delicacies that country Western Australia has to offer.
The folks at Jeanne d'Moore are passionate about the style and have a collection they are proud of - which now includes the very gorgeous Willow the Wonderer books and toys!
Go and check it out for yourselves!
Our thanks to Marie for your support :)
Thank you for re-stocking!
Another addition to our holiday restockist list - This is another one of the original stores that stocked the very first printing of Willow the Wonderer.
It's a gorgeous (still newish) bookshop that started by owner/manager Reem around the same time we began our publishing venture - and was one of our stopovers in the first trip to Victoria. They also have an instore cafe - where we can vouch you get great coffee whilst browsing through Willow the Wonderer books. Head on down and taste it for yourselves.
Our thanks to Reem for your continued support :)
October 2023 Buy Local Update:
Welcome to The Really Good Bookshop, Hillcrest Queensland
We are excited to welcome a fairly eclectic new bookshop to our Buy Local directory in Queensland last month, which in the words of their customers is filled from the floor to ceiling with books!
The Really Good Bookshop is a family owned and operated retail independent bookstore situated at Hillcrest in Queensland.
They trade in and sell new and used books in all genres. In 2006 they primarily opened as a used book store. On opening day their shelves held about 15,000 titles but since then they have expanded and now hold well over 100,000 new and used titles on their shelves - which now includes the entire collection of Willow the Wonderer picture book series!
The best bit - customers can also trade in their used books for store credit! Every bookworms dream :) Our thanks to Wendy for her interest in our titles - we appreciate your support :)
Thank you for re-stocking!
With the launch of our new title, Space Odyssey, this month, we've been busy taking orders from some of the original bookstores!
We can confidently say that you can get all three Willow the Wonderer titles from these bookshops:
Woollahra Bookshop, Woollahra NSW
The Yass Book Store, Yass ACT
Books at Stones, Stones Corner QLD
We wanted to call out and thank Liz (Elizabeth Arfi), the Store Manager of Harry Hartog in Bondi Junction, for her ongoing support of Local Authors. She has a beautiful dedicated space in her stores for local authors and sells heaps of our books - in fact she is our "bestseller" (pun intended!)
She sent us a lovely note which I thought I'd share, after all, it is the advocacy and support of booksellers like Liz the helps local authors and independent press like ours exist.
"Congratulations on your new book! Looking forward to supporting the title in store. It looks as though the [Willow the Wonderer] books are the big hit for us."
June 2023 Buy Local Update:
Welcome to Petrarch's Bookshop, Launceston Tasmania
We are thrilled to introduce our first local stockist in Tasmania - meet the fantastic folks at Petrarch's Bookshop!
Petrarch’s stocks a wide range of book categories, with special emphasis on Tasmaniania, gardening, cooking, architecture, health, art and many more.
Their children’s book section has quadrupled in size in recent years and we are delighted to say now includes the Willow the Wonderer series.
Their rather interesting name also has an interesting story, having being inspired by Italian poet Petrarca.
So dear Tasmanians, next time you are feeling like buying some of our books, give the good folks at Petrarch's a holla - and get your hands on signed Willow the Wonderer books.
Welcome to Foodworks in Longreach, QLD
Located in the town of Longreach in sunny Queensland, Foodworks Longreachis possibly our most remote stockist todate! Think we fell in love with them the moment we looked up their facebook page and checked out all the shennigans the ladies running the joint get up to ...
Foodworks Longreach pride themselves on providing good old fashioned service, quality & fresh produce, and a little bit of something for everyone."
It seems to be working as testment by one of their customer reviews:
"Well the foodworks in Longreach would have to be one of the best small personally owned stores we have ever been in. They run rings around the large commercial stores and their customer service is so welcoming and friendly. As you walk in the door your greeted by all staff that are on the floor with a hello or help finding something if you need it. Must say that goes a long way in my book ... Thanks for showing us that there is still that good old Aussie friendly service alive and well."
So if you live in and around Longreach, consider buying Willow the Wonderer picture books and premium giftsets directly from here.
Our huge thanks to Rose for taking our little Willow on.
Thank you for re-stocking!
Shout-out to the stores that have re-stocked Willow the Wonderer books and toys - our huge thanks to the store mangers - Beth, James and Michael - for their ongoing support.
Incidentally all these stores are located in some of Sydney's best shopping and food district, so do pop in when you next feel like indulging in a bit of (responsible) retail theraphy or cafe culture ;-)
March 2023 Buy Local Update:
Welcome to Linen Caravan in North Stradbroke, QLD
Another rather exotic store, from another rather exotic location, in our most exotic state - Queensland! (Have I used the word exotic enough times?) Extending a warm welcome to Linen Caravan from North Stradbroke Island to our Buy Local directory.
Linen Caravan was established in 2014 on North Stradbroke Island. It was born from the discovery of a love for beautiful textitles and soft furnishings for the home. Today, Linen Caravan is a collection of beautiful tactile, colourful and quality soft furnishings, and a wide array of gifts.
You can find them online as well as at the Point Lookout Markets on North Stradbroke Island. Another huge thanks to Estelle for stocking Willow the Wonderer picturebooks and toys.
Welcome to Charlie Horse Toys in Whittlesea, VIC
We also welcomed a gorgeous new toy shop, with an equally gorgeous name, to the mix: Charlie Horse Toys based at Whittlesea in Victoria.
Charlie Horse Toys hosts a wonderful collection of interesting toys, books and learning resources that will spark children's curiosity. The store at Whittlesea is an enchanting place to spend a lazy hour or two browsing their collection.
They also have an online store as well - where from what we can see, all the Willow the Wonderer picture books have already sold out (!) but a few plush toys are still around, waiting to find their special little human friends.
Huge thanks to Nicola for adding our Willow to her collection of favourite things.
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