Immersed in the vast sea of bookshelves, labyrinths of goods, and tranquil ambiance of Indigo Books and Music Inc.’s newest retail sanctuary in The Well building in Toronto, Heather Reisman finds herself in her natural ground.
She admires artwork suspended over the in-store stationery corner, conjured by local creatives. The resonant notes of Bette Midler’s 1990 hit “From a Distance” echo from a jukebox, her fingers having danced over its keys. She dreams of reserving an intimate haven for children’s imagination to flourish through arts and crafts.
Mindfully surveying every nook and cranny, Reisman looked forward to the day they threw a protective tarp over the robust wooden table, transforming it into a creative playground for the little visitors as she enthusiastically stated during a media tour. To her, the table is not just furniture. It’s where joy and creativity come to life, much as they do at her own home.
Though the amble around her fresh outpost might appear unremarkable on the surface, for Reisman, this is a promising renaissance, both personally and for her cherished empire.
In a not-so-distant past, Reisman departed the business she initiated in 1996. Indigo had evolved under her watchful eye from a bookselling cornerstone into an expansive lifestyle retail conglomerate, providing everything from cast iron dutch ovens to collagen powder, elegant bed frames, and even risqué toys. She had nurtured 171 store locations over 27 years, and relinquishing control had felt like wrenching a piece of her soul away.
As former chief executive, her departure left sizable shoes to fill. The baton was passed to Peter Ruis, an adept executive with backgrounds in John Lewis, Anthropology, and Jigsaw. Reisman stepped away from the business board in August, a chapter that she described as among the hardest for any business founder.
Her exit was closely trailed by a cyberattack in February that thrusted Indigo’s online operations into a standstill, impacting sales profoundly for weeks. This upheaval prompted four board directors, with Dr. Chika Stacy Oriuwa attributing her resignation to lost confidence in the board leadership and purported mistreatment. Indigo, however, remained reticent about the concerns raised by Dr. Oriuwa.
Leadership roles witnessed further transformation, as Ruis resigned abruptly in September without providing a public explication for his decision. Simultaneously, Andrea Limbardi, a longtime employee and president of Indigo, announced her departure to oversee apparel giant Reitmans Canada Ltd., a revelation she shared via her LinkedIn profile.
The winds shifted yet again, and Reisman assumed Ruis’ role in the company. When asked about the allegation of mistreatment and changes implemented by her predecessor, she urged journalists to question the veracity of everything read.
Evasive about queries regarding her immediate predecessor’s vision contrasted with hers for the Well store, she simply stated her disinclination to delve into that topic. This location was initially intended to be Ruis’s magnum opus, a cultural colosseum spanning 16,000 square feet.
The grand design was eloquently brought to life as a haven for readers and shoppers to unwind, sipping on beverages served from a vintage 1950s Citroen truck parked at the entrance, while perusing home fragrances, houseplants, and a vivid range of Japanese graphic novels, Manga. The store also boasted a listening booth and jukebox, complete with nostalgic pinball and Pac-Man machines – yet a few of these elements were conspicuously missing on the eve of the store opening.
A Canadian artist, Kent Monkman, is slated to unveil an art installation soon. As Reisman admitted, the creation of every store invariably involves a list of learning points. The focus, however, indisputably remains on books – the lifeblood of the retail chain. For Reisman, this venture remains a testament to her devotion to the unparalleled joy of reading, as evidenced by her impressive personal collection of over 10,000 titles.
The incorporation of lifestyle items to supplement the revenue from book sales has been a strategical success, as opined by Joanne McNeish, a marketing professor at Toronto Metropolitan University. Considering the related nature of these auxiliary products and their appeal as spontaneous purchases, gifts, and easy-to-carry items, their introduction has accounted for 44% of Indigo’s revenue this year.
Steering the company towards continued growth while maintaining the literary roots will be an exciting challenge for Reisman to undertake. Her immediate ardor, however, lies in inviting patrons into her new store, hoping they perceive it as their “happy place.” A place where joy finds its ground, and creativity flourishes unbound.
