The Four-Eyed Frog Sees Illustrious Future

"As a youngster I knew I wanted to own a small retail store in a small community near the ocean," said brand-new bookseller Joel Crockett. By his teens he refined his business plan to include a bookstore. Approximately four and a half decades later, Crockett realized his goals with uncanny exactitude. On November 24, he opened The Four-Eyed Frog bookstore in the diminutive beach town of Gualala, California. "I can look out the window and see the ocean," said Crockett.

The Four-Eyed Frog was quickly off to a promising start. Though the grand opening night was stormy, 50-60 Gualalians and others came to celebrate having a bookstore in their midst again and to listen to the Crockett Brothers, Joel and his brothers Christopher and Jeremy, play their beach songs. "Our music is something like the Beach Boys," said Crockett, who told BTW that Del-Fi Records signed the band during the '60s.

The well-attended opening was the harbinger of more good things to come. So far, the Frog has doubled all of Crockett's careful projections. He offered a few hypotheses for the bookstore's successful two months of operation. "We have a very unique situation. We’re an hour and fifteen minutes from any other bookstores. We’re not near any superstores or warehouses." Additionally, Crockett explained that Gualala, with its population of fewer than 1,000 in northern California, had an independent bookstore that closed four years ago. People missed having a place to buy their books nearby. "This community was hungry for a bookstore," said Crockett. "They’ve supported us since day one. It’s just been phenomenal."

Joel Crockett, owner of the new Four-Eyed Frog bookstore in Gualala, California

Additionally, Crockett told BTW that he thought some of his solid numbers reflected the practice of online purchasing losing some of its allure. "The magic of online buying has dissipated. We have become a destination spot. People love coming in and looking, even if they don’t always buy."

The Four-Eyed Frog was so dubbed following due consideration. Crockett said he noticed a lot of bookstores were named after "critters." There's The Learned Owl, Dragon Books, The Book Worm, Hedgehog Handworks, and Butterfly Books, among many others. The frog was a natural choice for him. When he first met his wife, Linda, she told him a frog joke; he bought her a neon frog; and from there the initial joke somehow metamorphosed into 20 years of frog gifts from everyone they know. So, with a little alliteration and a nod to the eternal symbol of bookishness, The Four-Eyed Frog was spawned.

The reason Crockett decided, in his early sixties, to get into bookselling was in part to realize his lifelong career fantasy, of course, but he also had been traveling extensively as a consultant to the commercial print industry and wanted to spend more time at home with his wife and his six-year-old nephew. So, he went onto the Internet to research bookselling and discovered the ABA. Crockett was hooked and "past the point of no return in very short order," he said. The ABA ultimately led him to Paz & Associates booksellers school, which he credits with teaching him the basics of owning and running a bookstore.

The Book Sense 76 list has also proved helpful, said Crockett. "It’s a great tool. I’m new to retail, let alone bookselling. Choosing books is the hardest thing for me. Book Sense helps. It allows me to focus on handselling books I wouldn’t be aware of and it’s an opportunity to introduce a new reading experience to customers." He keeps a selection of 76 Picks near the front door displayed on a lily-pad table supported by giant frogs.

The Four-Eyed Frog just signed up for the electronic gift card program the day before Crockett spoke with BTW. He had one sale to report. He mentioned that he was pleased to offer an added convenience to his customers. "I’m trying to provide services to folks who live up here. A lot of folks are older and have grandchildren, nephews, nieces, and have difficulty choosing what to send. They don’t want to send a book because it’s bulky and [the person receiving the book] might have already read it. Sending a gift card reinforces the importance of reading, but gives the youngsters a choice. The cards are particularly valuable to that market."

Another reason Crockett was happy to offer the cards was that selling them could potentially "support other independent bookstores. Anything I can do to support the independent … is a good thing."

About his sudden immersion in retail and bookselling, Crockett said, "It’s different than what I expected. It’s much more time-consuming than I anticipated. And inventory management is a big challenge. My inventory isn't pretty right now, but it will be by the end of February. It's a big job, but I don't regret it. I'm taking it one day at a time. I want to grow into the best darn bookstore we can be. And we're off to a great start." --Karen Schechner