A group of Blue Mountains residents has banded together to attempt to establish the only community owned bookshop in Australia.
The Turning Page co-operative's share offer was released on November 12 with shares of $100 being sold and a total of 4000 up for grabs. In its first week more than 350 shares sold.
Virginia Fortunat has put up her hand to be the foundation director. She has been working on the project with seven other core members, since it was first floated by the owners back in April. The group also managed a GoFundMe campaign in July to support the venture.
"As a regular customer, mother and [primary school] teacher I was keen to support this venture," she said.
The team has been working through the Department of Fair Trading's process to form the co-operative, which, she said, was "a fabulous opportunity to put the Blue Mountains on the literary map of Australia".
"The word is beginning to get out there and the excitement we are seeing in the Mountains and around Australia has caught us by surprise. We even have enthusiasts from Western Australia buying a share.
"Putting a book into a child's hands in one of the greatest privileges of my life as a teacher. Bookshops are one of the key anchor businesses in small towns, so many communities have sadly lost their bookshops and this community is determined not to lose ours. We really hope the community supports us by buying their $100 share and being a part of local history."
The much loved independent bookstore has been running for 36 years - but about a year ago the owners announced it was time to quit. Annie Sharkey and Alan Crooks put it on the market with a selling price of about $370,000 and waited for an offer. When that didn't work, the idea was born to float it on a kind of community stock market.
It's a very "egalitarian" Australian idea, said Ms Sharkey, which has been around in this country since the 1850s. Bowling clubs, pubs, cabs and farmers co-ops make up an estimated 1700 co-operatives in the nation and local examples include Lyttleton Stores in Lawson and the Blue Mountains Food Co-op in Katoomba.
The pair said by supporting Australia's only co-operative bookshop, members are helping to maintain a local cultural and literary hub which champions literacy in the community and invests in national literacy programs. Ms Sharkey will remain for up to 2 years, in a paid management role, to assist. Members need to spend $100 a year to keep their share.
Ms Fortunat said the Australian Book Sellers Association and the Australian Publishers Association are "all watching with excitement".
She thanked the many people who "advised us and supported us in establishing the co-operative, particularly our team of foundation directors, none of whom I knew before we started, and now count as firm friends". Go to www.turningpagecoop.com to join.
