There will be one less bookstore to visit after the end of this year's annual Oak Cliff Book Crawl — Poets Books is closing its Bishop Arts location. It closes on Sunday.
Because the shop's lease was not renewed, owner and Dallas resident Marco Cavazos said he will combine his Oak Cliff store into the Deep Ellum location, which opened just over a year ago.
The announcement was made April 16 on social media with white text on red background that noted that the shop was suddenly closing — despite a thriving business and prompt rent payment over the last six years.
Cavazos said the shop was promised a new lease in 2024 but it never materialized. Then the shop received some escalation charges.
"We had some concerns about the legitimacy and authenticity of new invoices and when we raised those concerns it kind of escalated and then we received a 30 day notice to vacate," he said.
KERA reached out to the property management company for comment but has not receive a response.
Cavazos opened the Bishop Arts storefront in December 2019. That decision was spurred by his passion for creative writing and poetry. What started as a poetry gallery quickly evolved into an indie bookstore.
"Then the neighborhood really started putting their own identity on it, with recommendations and special orders and just paying attention to what people were wanting and what was selling and what we were interested in," he said.
Today, Oak Cliff is seen as a hub for independent bookstores. But Claudia Vega, owner and operator of Whose Books, said it was not always like that.
Vega said when she was growing up in Oak Cliff access to bookstores was very limited. When Whose Books was founded, Vegas said they were told by developers that the neighborhood did not need anymore bookstores and that the people in Oak Cliff "don't read."
"And so we had to kind of fight our way into finding space," Vega said. "And now, Oak Cliff is known for the number of bookstores that it has, right? And that is the work of a lot of people coming together to build community and to really champion the importance of books and reading."
Whose Books started the Oak Cliff book crawl in 2022 to highlight the area's indie bookstores. Vega said each shop looks and feels different with very little overlap on product.
"That has really been something that we've all been proud of because it's taken a lot of work to build that up together as a community," Vega said. "So it is disheartening to hear that we're going to be losing one of them."
Cavazos said the staff at his bookstore have a good relationship with their regular customers and tailored selections based on what people ordered and wanted to see on the shelves.
He called the closure, coinciding with Independent Bookstore Day and the Oak Cliff Book Crawl, "fortunate timing" because it's typically one of the busiest days of the year.
"So the timing lining up with that kind of, I think, it's a good thing," Cavazos said. "It gives us a way to really see our customers, interact with everybody, and have like a nice kind of going away party."
But Poets Books' Bishop Arts departure is part of a greater change seen in the area. Cavazos said many of the shops that once called the area home ten years ago are no longer in the neighborhood. Local shops have been displaced or priced out.
Cavazos said a lot of the local identity of the neighborhood has started to shift into feeling like the Dallas entertainment district, catering to big money and institutional capital.
"And with all that stuff, you get these really super cool, fancy concepts," he said. "But then you start losing all the small local stuff that sort of gave Bishop Arts its soul."
Some of those local businesses have relocate. But others have closed completely. Cavazos said it's hard to establish a name in a neighborhood and try to relocate elsewhere.
Poets Books is in the process of looking for a new home for the Oak Cliff store. But Cavazos said he doesn't want to rush into anything.
"We're kind of moving on short notice," he said. "So we wanna combine to Deep Ellum, take a breath, and make sure we make the right decision for the new home, wherever that ends up being."
Got a tip? Email Megan Cardona at mcardona@kera.org.
KERA News is made possible through the generosity of our members. If you find this reporting valuable, consider making a tax-deductible gift today. Thank you!
