I am sad to relay the message that another “Mom and Pop” type store is closing in Fayette County.
The Omega Book Store, in Peachtree City, is closing its doors on the last day of this month. It opened in 1986.
Several years ago we lost out own locally owned book store in Fayetteville due to Barnes and Noble moving in. Years later the shopping unit it was located in sold and the new owners wanted more for B&N in its leasing agreement.
Since the book store was making money, our mayor at that time searched throughout Fayetteville for another spot for B&N to go. Unfortunately, its corporate office didn’t care that it could make money in our fair city, it decided to just close it. Period.
At this point, there was only Omega Books and the huge conglomerate, Books A Million, both located in Peachtree City.
One was a small, friendly place, with a staff that had time to stop and chat with you and offer suggestions. And there was convenient parking near the door. Not to mention, it was locally owned. I decided to deal with the small, personal touch store. I have been emailing my request for a book, they email back when it’s ready, and I have been driving to Peachtree City to pick it up for several years and happy to do so.
There are a number of sensible reasons for Omega to close: it’s no longer in a high traffic area. Of course there’s those Kindle readers which have gained so much reader-interest, not to mention that if we want one of those “Top 10” books from the New York Times list, we can just pick one up the next time we’re at Kroger.
I shall miss my association with the staff at Omega Books and will have to order books on line now. The order will be cut and dried with no personal touch. Bummer! I wish August 29 didn’t have to come.
A word on Julian Bond: I used to cover the Georgia Legislature when working for a local newspaper back in the 1970s. The reporter booth was right up front in the Capitol and our Fayette representatives just happened to be located in the front row.
Sitting a third of the way up the legislative seats was Julian Bond, resplendent in a white turtle neck sweater. I can still see him sitting there. Our legislature didn’t give him much ground to accomplish his initial goals, but later life sure did.
