Dalé Zine trades the fluorescent glare of retail stores for a curated artsy atmosphere full of music, handmade zines, unique art books and an in-person experience that can’t be found anywhere else.
Across South Florida, other bookstores, like The Dancing Elephant, a metaphysical shop with an assortment of books, crystals and more, and Old Florida Book Shop, known for its classic atmosphere and antique maps, are thriving and carving out a space for themselves in the ever-changing world of bookselling.
“Because there are so many other avenues for purchasing books, choosing to support your local bookstore is always a sign that the bookstore is providing something that you can’t get somewhere else, which is often the feeling of community space,” said Linda-Marie Barrett, the executive director of the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance.
The alliance, a regional association of the American Booksellers Association, supports over 350 independent bookstores across 11 states, with over 50 members from Florida.
“Our main goal is to help them thrive and survive,” Barrett said. “We try to help them succeed as businesses in whatever format they’re choosing to be in.”
Dalé Zine chose art and community.
Located in the Miami Design District, the store was founded in 2009 by Lillian Banderas and Steve Saiz as a zine shop and independent publisher, promoting local independent artists.
Dalé Zine specializes in zines, which are self-published creative booklets. Customers can also find a range of art magazines and books, exhibition catalogs, journals, stickers, trinkets and more on various topics.
The store also hosts art events, workshops, book signings, book clubs and more, and has a gallery space where artists can display and sell their work.
“I think it’s important for communities to have spots like this, where they see mind-opening stuff and stuff made by people like them,” said customer Taylor Bussey as she looked over a shelf of handmade zines.
Bussey admired the shop’s diversity, noting that she could find books and small artists that she couldn’t find anywhere else and wouldn’t think to look for.
“I think it’s a really accessible place to learn about new things,” said Taylan Kommer, a freelance artist visiting Dalé Zine for the second time.
Kommer found new reading material on topics she’s not familiar with, like a book on the history of synths, an electronic instrument.
“The most successful stores know their communities really well and that is a key to success,” Barrett said.
Like Dalé Zine, The Dancing Elephant in Lake Worth Beach follows the same trend.
The Dancing Elephant, dubbed a “good luck store,” is one of the few metaphysical bookstores in South Florida. It is a cozy cabinet of curiosities that flourishes in a niche of tarot, crystals and esoteric titles.
And their uniqueness is their good luck charm.
“If you want to open a bookstore, you have to have a niche,” said the store’s owner, Shane Logan.
Logan strives to create a space for the metaphysical and spiritual community and foster a welcoming literary environment that can positively change people’s lives.
The store started as a rebirth of Rainbow Bridge, a metaphysical bookstore in West Palm Beach owned by Hungarian metaphysicist Tamas Burger.
Logan, a regular at Rainbow Bridge, befriended Burger, who sold the store and its inventory to him in 2022.
Logan moved the store to downtown Lake Worth Beach, renaming it The Dancing Elephant, where it took the former location of The Book Celler, an independent bookstore and cafe that closed in 2020 due to financial strain.
Owning and sustaining a bookstore is not easy, but Logan found a competitive edge in experiential retail and online presence.
With its curated design and aesthetic, The Dancing Elephant sells an experience and fosters a community that entices customers.
“People want to go to a beautiful store and people want beautiful books,” Logan said.
Old Florida Book Shop in Dania Beach is another beautiful store that benefits from its aesthetic.
With floor-to-ceiling shelves full of rare books, historic selections and classic literature, the shop curates an old-world atmosphere complete with antique maps, vintage magazines and a cat named Peter.
William Chrisant, the store’s owner, has been selling books since 1978 and opened his Florida store in 2009.
Chrisant said the internet and young people keep the store in business today.
“I think that the present generation of young people have sort of been deprived of books,” Chrisant said.
And now that drives them towards independent bookstores, as most of Chrisant’s customers are under 30.
“People come in and they just love the place aesthetically,” Chrisant said. “They take a picture of the store, send it to their friends and then their friends see it and they post it sometimes, and it’s publicity for us.”
The shop has strong community support, especially through its “outdoor bookstore” that’s open 24 hours a day on the honor system.
“People like the fact that it’s there and that they’re trusted,” Chrisant said. “People come at strange hours and just buy a book and pay us through the door when we’re not even here.”
However, sometimes community support is not enough to keep a bookstore open.
The Palm Beach Bookstore, known for its well-curated selections that reflected its customers’ interests, was a staple of Palm Beach and one of four bookstores in the town.
But due to rising operating costs and rent, the store closed in April after nearly 40 years.
The store sold books on architecture, design, history, Florida and Palm Beach-themed fiction, best-sellers and more, which were put on sale ahead of the closure.
“It is hard,” Barrett of the Booksellers Alliance said. “We never like to see a store close unless it’s the owner’s wish because the loss of an independent bookstore in your community really is a loss that everyone feels.”
Independent bookstores can close for many reasons, including competition from online retailers like Amazon.
Originally marketed as “Earth’s biggest bookstore,” Amazon accounts for about 60% of print book sales and 90% of e-books, making it harder for independent stores to stay afloat, despite the unique community experiences they create.
But local, independent stores aren’t fading, despite the fast, easy convenience of Amazon delivery.
They are resurging, harnessing unique literary identities to bring back the thrill of book hunting in brick-and-mortar stores and to combat the rise of one-click online retail.
“In the last few years, our membership has doubled and we’ve seen huge growth in new bookstores opening and that includes Florida,” Barrett said.
In 2024, the American Booksellers Association reported that 323 bookstores opened and 247 planned to open.
Independent Bookstore Day, held annually on the last Saturday of April, also saw increased participation with over 2,000 stores, making it the largest celebration of independent bookstores yet.
“We are seeing stores opening in new forms and new retail models and I think the experimentation with different ways to sell books and reach readers is driving the growth,” Barrett said.
Barrett also emphasized the independent bookstore as a third space that ensures people have access to books.
“Bookstores can be those sanctuaries, those havens where you can relax,” Barrett said. “It’s a breath of fresh air where you can feel very supported and that’s something you’re not going to find in almost any other environment.”
Stores like the Dancing Elephant create those spaces and encourage people to engage with them, transforming customers into readers who are part of a community.
Logan also believes some books can completely change your life.
Those books and experiences can be found in independent bookstores, where visitors can browse curated shelves for the book that calls to them.
“Indie bookstores are only going to get more popular and the future is very bright,” Logan said.
