“Mile High” Moves at Denver’s Tattered Cover Bookstore
The year was 1997. On a trip to Denver where I would be serving as a keynote speaker for a national conference at the then Adams Mark Hotel downtown (now the Sheraton), I was told by a local resident that a visit to Tattered Cover Bookstore was a must for any book aficionado. So I heeded the call and took a trek over to the location in Denver’s toney Cherry Creek North district.
Needless to say, I was in heaven!
To this day, lots of historic lore remains around that iconic Tattered Cover location. Featuring a fourth story restaurant replete with fancy tableware and a wait staff who would place your check bill in a book when your meal time was complete, the bookstore became a favorite of bibliophiles traveling to Denver from all parts of the world. Sadly, that location closed in 2006, transitioning to an old renovated theater location on Colfax Avenue in Denver, east of downtown.
Fast forward to 2021. After a tough year with pandemic closures and a delay in operations, Tattered Cover on June 12th opened its highly anticipated, new location in McGregor Square in the heart of Lower Downtown (LoDo). This store replaces the previous locale nestled in the historic Morley Mercantile Building at the corner of 16th Street and Wynkoop that first opened in 1994.
The newly minted two-story, 6,800 square-foot location with a reported 6,800 books includes a co-adjoined Starbucks. It sports a grand staircase reminiscent of the bookstore's former Cherry Creek location as well as the original LoDo store. The second floor overlooks Coors (Baseball) Field and LoDo, allowing visitors to take in the scenic view while browsing or working virtually.
During my recent visit earlier this week I was immediately struck by the building’s modern aesthetics and natural lighting from Colorado’s 300 days of sunshine. It was also great to see that the store computers used by staff had been upgraded from those of the old store that seemed Byzantine.
The Tattered Cover store chain also went through a leadership transition when then owners Len Vlahos and Kristen Gilligan who had purchased the stores from long-time owner Joyce Meskis in 2015 sold the chain to Bended Page, LLC.
Then in late 2020, an investor group led by CEO Kwame Spearman and David Back, both Denver natives and high school debate rivals who had developed a fond affection for the bookstore, purchased it with an eye toward the future. With that came news that the bookstore’s long-time LoDo manager, Derek Holland, agreed to remain with Tattered Cover after having been a staple with the store community for 30 years.
On the stores website history tab, Back, whose first job was a store cashier at age 15, called Tattered Cover “the best bookstore in the Western Hemisphere.”
Desiring to fuel greater community engagement locally, Holland and Spearman have publicly said that their focus in the near future will be in helping to reignite the local economy after the recent economic downturn tied to the pandemic. As a long time store supporter, I am excited to see Tattered Cover turning the page, forging a new benchmark for independent booksellers throughout the world.