I AM Books emergency fund
Donation protected
On March 12, 2020, our little bookstore in Boston's North End neighborhood was closed for two weeks, to make sure our staff, our community, and our customers stay safe as the coronavirus pandemic puts everyone at risk. We hope to re-open on Friday, March 27. However, this is a tentative date, and if the situation in our area will still be critical, we will move our re-opening to a future date to be determined.
We are a business, but we are a family first and foremost, and we must look after each other. After speaking with my business partner and all the staff, we have convened that the best thing to do in these trying times is not put anyone at risk. Therefore we are also canceling or postponing all events through the end of April.
Please do not take this as an excess of fear on our part, or a panic-driven decision. The majority of our staff is Italian (as am I), and we all have family and friends in Italy. We speak to them on a daily basis. Our beautiful country is being ravaged by the coronavirus. The region of Lombardia — one of the most industrious and wealthy regions of Europe, with some of the best hospitals in the world — is facing an unprecedented crisis, and the health system is on the verge of collapse due to the high number of critically ill patients that show up every day. The Italian government’s decision to lock down the country is not the result of mass hysteria, but the inevitable outcome necessary to contain the threat of this new and harmful virus.
Needless to say, this will all have a heavy impact on our small business. To give you just one example: We were looking forward to the New England Food Show between March 22-24, where we would have managed the bookstore for three days and handled all book signings. Last year, this event alone allowed us to make enough money to pay one month worth of rent and payroll. The event, for obvious and justifiable reasons, has been canceled, which also means we will not have that vital source of revenue we were counting on.
March is one of those months where we make just enough to scrape by, and it comes on the heels of January and February, the absolute worst months of the year, which regularly put us in a deep hole — a hole we are able to crawl out of during the summer, when we benefit from the influx of tourists coming to the North End from all over the world. And how will that go? Will the global tourism machine be back on its feet by July, after being hit in such a devastating way by the coronavirus? We don’t know, which also means we don’t know when things will get better for our little bookstore.
But we must not lose hope. Throughout history, humanity has gone through trying times just like this one, if not worse. I think of Boccaccio and his Decameron, but also of Alessandro Manzoni, and his description of a plague-riddled Milan in The Betrothed. Times were desperate, but people managed to get through it and saw better days. If we act as a community and take care of each other, we will get out of this sooner rather than later.
If you want to help us get through these trying times, please consider donating $5 or $10 to this campaign. We have set a goal of $5,000, which is basically what we would need to pay one month's rent and also guarantee pay to our employees.
You can also help by purchasing books from our website, iambooksboston.com, or by purchasing gift cards (also from the website). Our online sales and shipping capacity are 100% operational.
Thank you so much for all your help. You have no idea how much every dollar means to us and to our bookstore.
Grazie,
Nicola Orichuia
Co-owner, I AM Books
We are a business, but we are a family first and foremost, and we must look after each other. After speaking with my business partner and all the staff, we have convened that the best thing to do in these trying times is not put anyone at risk. Therefore we are also canceling or postponing all events through the end of April.
Please do not take this as an excess of fear on our part, or a panic-driven decision. The majority of our staff is Italian (as am I), and we all have family and friends in Italy. We speak to them on a daily basis. Our beautiful country is being ravaged by the coronavirus. The region of Lombardia — one of the most industrious and wealthy regions of Europe, with some of the best hospitals in the world — is facing an unprecedented crisis, and the health system is on the verge of collapse due to the high number of critically ill patients that show up every day. The Italian government’s decision to lock down the country is not the result of mass hysteria, but the inevitable outcome necessary to contain the threat of this new and harmful virus.
Needless to say, this will all have a heavy impact on our small business. To give you just one example: We were looking forward to the New England Food Show between March 22-24, where we would have managed the bookstore for three days and handled all book signings. Last year, this event alone allowed us to make enough money to pay one month worth of rent and payroll. The event, for obvious and justifiable reasons, has been canceled, which also means we will not have that vital source of revenue we were counting on.
March is one of those months where we make just enough to scrape by, and it comes on the heels of January and February, the absolute worst months of the year, which regularly put us in a deep hole — a hole we are able to crawl out of during the summer, when we benefit from the influx of tourists coming to the North End from all over the world. And how will that go? Will the global tourism machine be back on its feet by July, after being hit in such a devastating way by the coronavirus? We don’t know, which also means we don’t know when things will get better for our little bookstore.
But we must not lose hope. Throughout history, humanity has gone through trying times just like this one, if not worse. I think of Boccaccio and his Decameron, but also of Alessandro Manzoni, and his description of a plague-riddled Milan in The Betrothed. Times were desperate, but people managed to get through it and saw better days. If we act as a community and take care of each other, we will get out of this sooner rather than later.
If you want to help us get through these trying times, please consider donating $5 or $10 to this campaign. We have set a goal of $5,000, which is basically what we would need to pay one month's rent and also guarantee pay to our employees.
You can also help by purchasing books from our website, iambooksboston.com, or by purchasing gift cards (also from the website). Our online sales and shipping capacity are 100% operational.
Thank you so much for all your help. You have no idea how much every dollar means to us and to our bookstore.
Grazie,
Nicola Orichuia
Co-owner, I AM Books
Organizer
Nicola Orichuia
Organizer
Boston, MA