For owner Chelsea Tresp, the bookstore game isn’t new, but having her own storefront is. Her first job was at Barnes & Noble, where she worked for seven years between Texas and New York. She landed a job at Harper Collins, where she moved up the ranks for four years and experienced the publishing landscape firsthand.
Bibliobar began as an online and pop-up bookshop, appearing at coffee shops and breweries since 2017. In 2023, she opened the Plano Shopping Co-Op in downtown Plano with her sister-in-law, selling her books on the second floor while her sister sold vintage clothes on the first.
The co-op closed in April 2024, but Tresp was still hungry for a permanent home.
“It was kind of hard to find us,” she says. “There was a lot of convincing people to come upstairs.”
Earlier this year, a prime location freed up right in the heart of downtown. It was previously occupied by The Feathered Nest, a women’s clothing store, and already had bookshelf structures built into the walls on both sides.
The shop quietly opened a few weeks ago, with Tresp still organizing shelves during most open hours. For this initial wave of customers, Tresp has been taking suggestions for her inventory. She says that poetry has been requested the most, with horror and sci-fi books coming in second.
At every turn, Tresp is transparent about her place as a small business owner, particularly one in the sprawling world of bookselling.
Written on a whiteboard in the window, Tresp lists the estimated number of books she must sell each month to stay open. The current total needed is 347 books sold to pay all necessary bills. The list notes that paying rent means 57 books must be sold, and making payroll for the month means another 133 books must be sold. It’s a tall task, one that Tresp is hoping to offset by bringing in another type of business, similar to the co-op. A tattoo pop-up is one idea, or maybe some kind of drink bar that leans into the shop’s name.
There's a small lounge area set up in the back of Bibliobar, perfect for an eventual bar or mini tattoo parlor.
Simon Pruitt
At 11 a.m., there will be a ribbon cutting and cake, followed by in-store author signings every hour from 12-6 p.m. Craft beer will be sold on-site from Four Bullets Brewery, and there will be a table for tarot readings from Tarot with M. The event is free to attend. Here’s the author lineup:
12 p.m. Leslie McElroy & Baleigh Jayne
1 p.m. ML Miller & Rachel Lewis
2 p.m. Judy Liu & Kit Aldridge
3 p.m. Sarah Damoff & Madison Lawson
4 p.m. Amy Woodruff & Kimberly Packard
5 p.m. Jessica Olson & Amber Palmer
6 p.m. Thea Claire & Jonny Garza Villa
“It’s so easy to just go on Amazon and click a button,” she says. “But I think people are really wanting third places where they can go and sit and hang out.”
Bibliobar, 1018 E 15th St, Plano, TX
