Fifteen-year-old Halley Vincent has owned Seven Stories, a bookstore located in downtown Shawnee, for nearly two years. But her passion for bringing books to the community started even earlier.
When Vincent was 8, she started what would become Paws Up KC, a nonprofit that raises and donates money to animal shelters. She began by selling baked goods, then giving away used books in her "bookmobile" in exchange for donations.
A few years later, Vincent — a sophomore at Shawnee Mission North High School — decided she wanted to try selling books for herself. Her mom was getting an art studio at the time, and it had some extra space — 97 square feet, to be exact. Seven Stories was born.
The shop is in a slightly bigger space now, about 400 square feet, at 11109 Johnson Drive. "There was a ledge above one of the doors that just so happened to fit seven or eight books," Vincent said. "And I always stand by the fact that 'Seven Stories' sounds better than 'Eight Stories.'"
Vincent co-owns the store with her mom. Its small size means there's always something new: Vincent sells about a third of her inventory every week and replaces it with different items.
The limited space also means she can do special, themed restock events. For the next three weeks, Seven Stories will hold a "book fair" that features entirely Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander authors.
Soon, Vincent is looking to move her store once again. She recently found that the building she leases from was being sold, with plans for serious construction.
"I had planned to be in this space for much longer, hopefully until I graduated high school, at which point I could get a business loan and hopefully escalate the projects I'm doing," Vincent says.
Vincent has now started a GoFundMe to help pay for the costs of relocation. She's currently about halfway towards her goal of $26,700, to cover the costs of rent, money for more bookcases, electricity and infrastructure improvements, plus more inventory and new signage.
- Halley Vincent, owner, Seven Stories
