AUSTIN, Texas — A fight for survival has come to an end for a popular Austin bookstore.
South Congress Books is shutting down its location on Kerbey Lane two years after moving.
The bookstore announced it would not renew its lease, which means packing up and moving out in January. An Instagram said keeping the bookstore open was “not sustainable or prudent.”
South Congress Books moved to Kerbey Lane after nearly 12 years on South Congress Avenue. While it aimed to keep the local flare alive on the popular street, rent increases forced the bookstore to relocate early in 2023.
“But tripling the rent, we just couldn’t go with that,” said John Barton, manager of South Congress Books following the decision to relocate. “We tried and we negotiated as much as we could.”
It was just one of the many businesses that have been forced to close up shot due to increased rents on South Congress Avenue. However, South Congress Books will now only exist online.
The bookstore said they’ll still be available as Tornbooks on Abebooks.com and South Congress Books on eBay. As part of “We Surrender December,” South Congress Books said they’ll also be hosting an “Epic Epilogue Sale” from Christmas Eve through Jan. 5, 2025.
Recent changes on South Congress
Earlier this year, three other businesses ended their time on South Congress Avenue. According to some, the changes made a 2020 brochure with business listings look more like an obituary.
“We’ve really seen a fairly drastic decrease since the pandemic in locally-owned shops,” said Brandon Hodges, who owns Big Top Candy Shop and Monkey See Monkey Do.
Hodges said the area’s popularity is a double-edged sword that morphed South Congress Avenue into a victim of its own success.
Mi Casa, The Good Company and Sunroom all shut down or moved locations after seeing triple-digit rent increases. The Good Company moved to West 12th Street in June, while Mi Casa moved 50 miles west to Johnson City. Sunroom permanently closed its doors.
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