Owner of Von's in West Lafayette contemplates store's future

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. − With recent reports that Von's Book Shop is considering closure, the owner of the shop, John von Erdmannsdorff, wants to clear the air that this Purdue staple is "not closing next week," and is still running at full capacity.

Store still going strong

Opened since 1968, Von's is a well-known spot on campus where students and non-students can get their fix of books, clothes, stones and gems, jewelry, playing cards, stuffed animals, knick-knacks and much more.

Von Erdmannsdorff told the Journal & Courier that while shoplifting has recently gone up, that this is not the first time the shop has considered closing its doors in the last 54+ years, and that new merchandise is still coming into the store.

"There have been numerous difficulties along the way that make us consider easy and more profitable option of just renting our space," von Erdmannsdorff said, "but we have always found ways to keep going."

Von Erdmannsdorff described previous examples of hardships the store has endured, such as when the street outside of the store changed to a one-way in 1991, causing 70% of their then-active video business to drop substantially. He also mentioned a time when roofers set fire to the building and the business struggled to recover after the damage, as well as when the county doubled the shop's property taxes by 100%.

"We have felt obligated to continue serving the community with so many people depending on us," von Erdmannsdorff said. "We are still actively adding new things. Just purchased 1,200 more used books; added a new shelf for books on ancient Egypt; ordered for the rocks and crystal area beautiful, new polished (stones)…added new novelties and retro candy in (the) gift area, ordered new vinyl for upcoming Record Store Day."

Shoplifting a considerable problem

At the cash register, there is a sign attached to the stone mushroom display asking people not to steal from the store. The small gems and statues like these have been some of the biggest targets for shoplifting, according to von Erdmannsdorff.

"When half of a particular item, or more than half of it, was being stolen (was when I really noticed the shoplifting)," von Erdmannsdorff said, "it was just so excessive. The little stone mushrooms and some others. There were similar other kinds of things around the store, new-age products, just fun things. There were things that sold very slowly that we just thought ought to be around. And they'd be one day and the next day they were all gone, and none of them had been sold."

Von Erdmannsdorff stated that he would make more money by just renting out the building, and that while the temptation to do so is there, he feels a need to keep the store going.

"I am tired sometimes and think, 'Why do I bother?" von Erdmannsdorff said. "But this is something that I've done now for 54-plus years...(My wife said) 'There's too many people depending on us. You can't (close). Just be careful.'"

Von Erdmannsdorff primarily wants to "set the record straight" that the store does not have immediate plans to close, but that getting the word out on the rising rates of shoplifting may help keep the doors open. He also stated that should the time come that he can no longer run the business himself, that he's not sure he would sell the store to another buyer.

"I don't believe that anybody would want to (buy) when it's not as lucrative," von Erdmannsdorff said. "This is done more as a service. And who wants to do it and spend this much time when you'd earn more by just renting it. That's the thing I keep coming back to."

Despite the monetary losses, von Erdmannsdorff considers the people he serves in his store his priority for keeping the store open.

"It almost always comes back to all those people who say to me 'What would we do without you?'" von Erdmannsdorff said.

Margaret Christopherson is a reporter for the Journal & Courier. Email her at mchristopherson@jconline.com and follow her on Twitter @MargaretJC2.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Von's Book shop only considering its closure, no immediate plans yet, the owner says.