LEBANON -- Monarch Books owner Sydney Graves runs an independent bookstore in downtown Lebanon offering more than 7,000 new and used books alongside gifts, games, puzzles and products from local artists and artisans. Graves opened the store in April 2024. Her mother, Monica, helps with the shop and sets up the storefront window displays when Graves is away.
Graves, 20, spoke about opening her bookstore, the challenges of running a small business and the role she hopes the shop will play in the community.
Are you originally from Lebanon?
Yeah, I grew up here. My entire family lives in Lebanon, too. I was homeschooled. So I did sports through the high school, and I did my freshmen year there, but it was during COVID, so it was all online.
Are you currently in school?
I’m getting my bachelor’s in business right now through an online university. I’m in my 1st year, it’s amazing. I took a little gap year to work on this. I went to college while I was in high school at LBCC and almost got my associate (degree), and then I got busy.
Were there any previous jobs that prepared you for starting a business?
Not really. I worked at Bloom Tea House before for like two or three years, and that really helped me with customer service, ‘cause I had to work the front. It was like waitressing and stuff. Before that I was very introverted. I’m still a bit introverted, but I’m much better at conversation now. Just knowing how to interact with customers and working in another small business kind of, like, you see how it’s run and things like that. So I’d say, for the most part, just other jobs.
What was your inspiration when opening Monarch Books?
Books. I just love books, and I love colorful things. So I love the artwork I get to do behind it, and the decorating, and there’s still a lot more I want to do. So I just like the creative aspect of it. It’s kind of my own little place, I can do whatever I want with it. I love meeting new people too, and hearing all their stories. Everything around it, I get to curate which is nice. It’s a creative outlet for me as well as work.
What was your inspiration for the name?
It was actually kind of funny, ‘cause have you seen the butterfly mural on the side of my wall? So when I first opened, that was being put into the works. They were getting an artist to do that, and they originally told me it was going to be a Monarch butterfly. I’m like, okay, so cute. There are gonna be these little Monarch butterflies on the side of my building. I’ll name it “Monarch Books,” I feel like it’s got multiple meanings too, so it’s just like a fun name and it’s nice to brand with. I can just pick a lot of Monarch things as my brand. Then it ended up being a Painted Lady butterfly. I was like, you know what, it still works.
What does your family think about your small business?
They actually love it, which is so funny. When I first started to open this, I was like, I don’t want to do it guys, because no one buys books anymore. They’re like, no you have to. You have to go live out your little hallmark dream or whatever. They’re all really supportive, which is nice. I had a couple of family members who were like, I don’t think that’s a very smart Sydney. But for the most part they love it, and they all come hang out here. A lot of them have their stuff here, like my sister sells plants and things she makes here. It’s a whole family affair, I guess.
What was your biggest surprise when starting this business?
How many people came in. My first day I opened, it was filled all day, and I barely had anything. It was, not barely anything, but a lot less in here than there is now. I had so many people come in, people I didn’t even know, supporting me. I was like, wow, it just surprised me because I had no idea how many people were gonna come in. I didn’t know people still read. So I was like, hey, this might work. It’s been awesome to see though.
What makes you unique compared to other bookstores?
It’s like new and used books, and I try to curate it to where it has a lot of local vendors, which most small businesses do, which is awesome. What I try to do differently with my bookstore is instead of it being books everywhere, I like to keep it very creative and colorful, and I want to eventually add a local artist section and really focus on the artsy side of it and not so much just be books. So kind of like having different outlets as well.
How do you compete or compare with big corporations like Barnes & Noble or Amazon?
It’s really hard obviously, because people like things very quick and fast paced nowadays and they want to be able to buy something at the click of a button. I feel like the only way I can really compare is a lot of people in local communities get really fed up with big corporations and stuff. And so they want to support small businesses. That’s really my customer base. People who are ordering books from me don’t care how long it takes because they want to support me and have money going into their community and not big corporations. So it’s obvious I can’t really compete with the speed or anything, but I can compete on a level that’s face to face and we have that connection.
Where do you source your books and other products from?
I’ve got lots of local vendors in here. I get a lot of stuff from wholesale, small business, Ingram, and Faire. If I can find it through a local vendor, I’d much prefer that than getting it off Faire, because it’s just so special to see everyone, especially artists creating something different. They all have backstories behind them, and there’s always a story to tell when you’re selling someone that. And once I start expanding, I’d love to get more.
Usually new books will come from Ingram and Faire. Used books, that’s like all over. I’ll go thrifting or I’ll get donations or I’ll do trade-ins. My friends at the library and I will trade off books. So there’s like a lot of different ways—I’ll do garage sales. My family members will donate them, so kind of everywhere. No shortage of books in the world. That’s for sure.
What is the biggest challenge you face today? How are you overcoming it?
My biggest challenge has probably been staying open all the time. I have a lot of other stuff I have to do, so having consistent hours and making sure I’m meeting every customer’s needs. There’s just one of me. I don’t really have people helping me. My mom will come and help sometimes, so I don’t overuse her. Being at the front of it and then running all the back stuff, doing orderings and cleaning, focusing on where my resources are going. Like, should I use this to improve, like build new shelves? Or should I just do a big order or plan an event? So just deciding where things get to go, I guess.
How do you balance your personal life with owning your own business?
That one’s so hard, because there is a lot of other stuff I do in my personal life. I have a couple other side jobs I do. So it definitely is hard sometimes. That’s why I’m looking to hire some people eventually, because it just gets to be a lot. But mostly it’s like, I get Sundays and Mondays off, so usually I use Sundays to reset and Mondays to either go volunteer with someone or hang out with my family. So it’s got a good balance.
What other side jobs are you affiliated with?
I do modeling on the side. So that can take up a lot of time. It’s very sporadic sometimes. I’ll have a lot of busy seasons and I’ll have seasons where I don’t book anything for a while or there’ll be times where I’m out of state for a long time. So it’s just kind of balancing that and never really knowing exactly what my schedule is. I’m also working on my art business on the side, because I sell my artwork too. Getting time to find how to be creative with that and find time to paint and to order prints and stuff like that.
Do you think books are a dying media?
I don’t think so, just because BookTok and Bookstagram are such a trend, like up and coming now. There’s really nothing you can replace a physical book with. Obviously there’s Kindle and audiobooks, which is nice, but I get a lot of people in here like, “Yeah I’ll do Kindle sometimes, and I’ll do audiobooks sometimes, but there’s really nothing better than the actual book.” Also with Kindle and audiobooks, you can’t display it on your shelf like a cute little trophy book. A lot of people who come in here to shop actually will read it on Kindle and then buy the physical book if they like it because they want the actual book itself. That’s why I think it will never really go out of style because books are just classic.
What is your opinion on the book ban?
I’d say, especially with the classics and things, obviously it’s a different time when those were written. I’m a firm believer in you should be able to access all sorts of books and people should be able to access those books, even if they have different opinions or languages in them. Because if you’re banning books or getting rid of books from a certain narrative, it’s basically taking away a little bit of your freedom. I feel like even if it’s something you don’t necessarily agree with, it shouldn’t be something that’s taken away because you should have the variety of different opinions.
What is your favorite book?
I really like the Six of Crows duology by Leo Bardugo. There’s a lot, but that’s one of my top ones.
If you were a book what book would you be?
I don’t even know, ‘cause I feel like it’s hard to see what yourself looks like to other people. Probably some sort of fairy fantasy book… So maybe, Holly Black’s Cruel Prince or something. That’s another one of my favorites.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to start their own business?
Just go for it. You literally never know how to start when you start. Start with what you have, and then build from there. You’re never gonna know. I learn new things every single day. I learn how to interact differently with customers. So I probably won’t know until I’m like ninety.
Any upcoming events?
There’s always Friday events downtown. What I’m working on is getting things kind of more set up in here, ‘cause there’s still so much I want to do. This back room, it’s gonna look different, so I can start hosting more events, because it’s hard for me to plan events when it’s not what I want it to look like in here. I do have a flower kind of workshop going on. It’s gonna be March 28. A lot of the time I’ll just have vendors or people who are interested come and they’ll host their own events in here and I’ll let them use my space. Then I have my two-year party coming up on April 15, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
What future do you see for this business?
I keep seeing it grow. I’d love to expand eventually, maybe add on to it. I want to be able to help others through it and be able to hire people or do more community events and things like that. I’d like to see it expand for sure. I think definitely for sure in the future, I just want to see where it goes, where God takes it. I’m definitely a very spiritually led person. I don’t have a ton of set plans in the future because whatever God wants me to do, that’s where I’ll be.
What’s your favorite part about your job?
Getting to do what I want. I kind of always knew I wanted to have my own small business. Not that I don’t like working for people, but it’s just nice to have freedom to think and to get to plan your own schedule out and to decide what to do at work instead of being told. I just really enjoy getting to decide what I do everyday. The downfall of that is I do have to be disciplined. I do have to make sure I’m getting things done, so that’s something I have to be careful with.
How do you define success beyond revenue or growth?
Honestly, happiness. As long as you’re enjoying what you do and you come to work everyday excited, that’s what success is to me. I love what I do and I love getting to interact with people and getting to be creative.
What impact do you hope your shop has on the community?
Getting kids to read more. I get a lot of parents coming in here; “I’m trying to get my kids to read more, but I don’t know what they like or they’re not into reading.” I feel like when I was a kid I read so much and it helped a lot with being creative and learning in general. So definitely getting more books out to the community for kids. Having a place where people can come and feel inspired. Eventually I want to turn this back room into a place people can study and just chill, sort of like a comforting place everyone’s welcome in.
How has owning a bookstore changed you personally?
Every single way. I feel like I’ve learned so much in the last two years. I’ll look back at myself before I owned this and like, that’s a completely different person. And I’m still the same personality and stuff, but I’m able to interact with people so much better than I did before. I’m much more confident than I was before. I’m a lot better with boundaries and saying no to things because I get a lot of questions, like people trying to sell me stuff in here all the time. I’m better with organizing. I feel like there’s so many positive ways it’s changed me. I’m so grateful to have it because it’s not only something I love to do, but something that’s improving me everyday too.
Sydney Graves
Age: 20
Occupation: Book seller
Interests: Selling books, modeling, art
Hometown: Lebanon Oregon
Business Established: April 2024
Business Location: 696 S. Main St. Lebanon Oregon
Hours: Tue-Fri 11 am - 6 pm, Sat 10 am - 7 pm (Closed Sun/Mon)
Phone: (458) 223-7263
Website: Monarch Books Website
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