Greenlight blowing up!

As we might have expected, the more we have going on with Greenlight, the less time we have to blog about it. So, apologies for a couple of weeks without an update. Here are some of the highlights of the last couple of weeks, in no particular order:

* Greenlight is featured as one of four startup small businesses on AOL's new "online reality series" The Startup. The first installment is their summary of how we got here (and around lunchtime on Tuesday 8/19 our grinning faces were featured on the top newsfeed on the AOL home page, along with Shania Twain and Celine Dion!) We'll be blogging about issues of interest to the small business world (as opposed to the book world or Brooklyn): how we formed partnerships and found a space, setbacks we experienced, our marketing plan and financing and all of that. Yet another way to follow along with your local indie bookstore -- we're grateful that AOL approached us and looking forward to how the series plays out.

* The third installment in our architect Fred's renovation blog on Brownstoner went up: check it out for some insights on bookshelf design, and some interesting architectural jargon.

* We made some important aesthetic decisions: the exact shade of wood stain on the bookshelves (as noted on Facebook), the design of the cash desk and other architectural elements, the placement of speakers (for ambient music and events). Interior design is no joke, y'all -- making these decisions was often agonizing! But we're so happy with what we ultimately chose -- we think you'll like it.

* We're in the process of interviewing some of the top candidates for Greenlight Bookstore staff. This too, obviously, will be a tough decision -- all the more so because there are so many awesome, qualified book people to choose from! We're hoping to get a team in place in time to help with setting up the store before it opens, so we're on a fast track -- we'll hope to introduce our crackerjack booksellers to you once the roster is confirmed.

* We're working on pulling together our backlist orders: the bulk of the store's inventory of books. After some negotiations with the major wholesalers, we're placing our major initial order with Ingram. This involves looking carefully at around 24,000 lines of an Excel spreadsheet to make our best guess at the core books our store should stock (knowing full well this will begin to change and evolve immediately when the doors open). Some late nights and early mornings have been experienced.

* We've also continued to meet daily with publishers to order the frontlist titles for fall -- so much good stuff coming out this season!

* We ordered computers -- Jessica now has 9 large boxes from CDW sitting in her apartment, awaiting configuration.

* We bought some display tables. One is a former library table; one is an industrial sewing machine table topped with a church door. (That one took two trips.) We love them -- they go with our best of the old / best of the new / funky / welcoming Brooklyn vibe. These are now sitting in Rebecca's living room, and will hopefully soon be joined by others.

* We went to the New York Gift Show on Sunday (as many of our bookselling peers and other retailers will do this week), to find some great greeting cards, journals, kids toys, and other sidelines to round out the bookstore's offerings. We found some great products and beautiful designs, and experienced some surreality as well (watch out for the animatronic life-size orangutan, and stay far away from the realistically breathing stuffed cats.)

* It's been pointed out by some of our fans (hi Mom!) that we haven't posted a picture of the storefront since its total conversion to green. So, see below! You can also catch a glimpse of the small painting in tribute to Robert Fulton, to the left of the storefront above the pink-and-blue entrance to the apartment buildings above, and get a little bit of a feel for the stretch of Fulton Street where we'll be making our home.

Thanks for reading -- we'll keep on keeping you posted!