By HOLLY GASKILL
In the heart of downtown, a new shop aims to bring comfort and community to the city of Bluffton.
Old Way Books & Curio opened its doors earlier this month in a newly renovated storefront at 110 S Johnson St. The store offers a variety of new and used books, antiques and plants.
Owner Jennifer Kirnec says she’s always been drawn to history and things from the past, often spending time with her nose in a book or collecting antiques. In an increasingly digital age, even the practice of reading a physical book ties in with this love of “Old Ways,” Kirnec says.
Kirnec and her family moved to Bluffton from the Indianapolis area in 2020. When she found the Johnson Street storefront earlier this year, she had actually been looking for a location for her husband, Topher, to move his Fort Wayne salon scissor business into a new salon and barber shop closer to home.
They ended up finding neighboring storefronts, and a personal passion for Jennifer Kirnec blossomed into a new business endeavor.
Kirnec led with antiques first, hoping to expand upon sales she had made online. It was only natural that over time, the business started to take on more of Kirnec’s passions. “It’s just all stuff that I love, so why not share it with other people?” Kirnec says.
She specifically wanted to fill what she felt was a need in the community, saying, “We have a clothing store, we have an ice cream parlor, (this is) just kind of a classic small town thing to have a bookstore. I think a lot of people felt the same way, that we needed something like this in downtown.”
Even more so, Kirnec hopes to foster a community among local readers. In recent years, social media apps like TikTok have created a growing popularity for reading, particularly for specific series and genres. Kirnec has already surveyed some customers through Facebook to tailor her stock to their interests — right now it’s a lot of romance, fantasy and Christian living. Kirnec is partial to historical fiction, particularly about World War II.
“Reading is the easiest way to put yourself in someone else’s shoes,” she says.
Further adding to a sense of community, customers can exchange old favorites from their personal library for new treasures. Old Ways carries both new and secondhand books and will purchase books in good condition for in-store credit.
Old Ways had its “soft launch” opening earlier this month and will re-open for regular hours on June 26. The shop will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays. Old Ways Books & Curio can also be found on Facebook and Instagram, which have links to their online inventory and inventory suggestions.
The Kirnecs plan to hold a grand opening celebration for both Old Ways Books & Curio and the salon on July 20.
holly@news-banner.com
