At a time when corporations account for the closing of many small businesses across the country, the Internet allows a small, privately owned New Brunswick bookstore to thrive.
Upon entering, one notices books on the ground, and stacked to the ceiling on the shelves. The proprietor's artwork covers the walls, enveloping the customer in the world of used, out-of-print and rare books.
The feel is different from the usual chain bookstore - calm and inviting, like a home instead of a business.
Lotus Bookstore owner George Isaac is not your typical cashier behind a Barnes & Nobles counter, and his collection is far from generic.
Some of the books in Lotus Bookstore - located at 57 Paterson St. - date back to the early 19th century.
Even the store's name offers a different meaning than the typical book chain titles. Lotus - a type of water lily found in Issac's native Egypt - is "a symbol of transformation in Egyptian mythology." It is also what Issac finds beautiful about books.
"It grows from the mud and blossoms in the sun," he said.
After attending the School of Visual Arts in New York City to study fine art, Issac eventually decided not to continue painting professionally.
"I bought this store in 1994," he said. "I like books, and I used to go to a lot of used book stores in Manhattan. It was a way to do something I like and keep painting."
He currently has approximately 400 paintings in the 800 square foot basement of the store, which is used for storage.
So how does a store not typically suited for the surrounding George Street - Rite Aid, Bank of America, Starbucks and the Rutgers University Bookstore - survive?
Issac attributes the store's success to the Internet, because he mainly sells books online locally and internationally.
"There is obviously a demand for used and out-of-print books," he said.
Each of the store's 20,000 books is on a database.
Issac continues to update his stock in order to cater to customers, but admits there is no way the business could survive without the Internet.
When making a purchase, customers pay for shipping and handling, the Web site takes a percentage of the sale, and Lotus Books then ships the product out to customers.
Certain criteria are assessed when placing a price on a particular book.
"It's supply and demand," Issac said. "The customer looks at the condition of the book and how much he or she wants to spend."
A book becomes more valuable and expensive if it was signed by the author or based on how many copies of the book were printed.
But since the bookstore also sells books on site, customers can browse the shelves for hours alongside the two cats in the store without dealing with online shopping.
Books range from $4 to $500, with most books costing in between $4 to $20.
The reason why Issac keeps a store instead of moving everything to a storage space and solely selling online is because he believes people like to discover books.
"You don't know what you're going to find," he said.
Lisandra Estevez, an art history graduate student and co-owner of Lotus, agrees the Internet plays an important role in the store's survival.
"From a business perspective, [the Internet] is one venue open 24-hours a day," she said. "It is a great deal more exposure, especially in recent years when bookstores in New York and New Jersey have gone out of business."
One doesn't have to look too far to see the effects of independently-owned bookstore closures recently. In Princeton, the owner of Micawber Books decided to sell his bookstore in March to Princeton University after a 26-year-old long run as a business, according to a Dec. 29, 2006 article in the New York Times.
The owner revealed his business was under siege, mainly because of chain competitors such as Encore Books, Barnes & Noble, Borders and Amazon.com. Eventually, his sales plummeted to such an extent that selling became a viable option, according to the article.
Estavez agrees many students opt for using online resources to buy books instead of traditional buying methods, because they offer more competitive prices. But Lotus Books is using the Internet as "a tool," Issac said.
"I think it's a combination of having the shop and being able to sell online," Estavez said. "The establishment of having a bookstore is good for the community, while selling online has possibilities too."
Among American adults, 97 million Internet users sought news online last year, and 92 million bought a product, according to census numbers from a New York Times article last month.
Although online consumerism has reached new heights in recent years, Estavez believes physical bookstores should still exist.
"A bookstore should still be a place which allows people to cultivate their intellectual pursuits," she said.
Some students agree it is better to shop in a bookstore than buy online. For Rutgers College senior Daniel Schreck, there isn't a need for much online book shopping.
"It's easier to go to the store and just pick them up," he said.
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