Even though we’re an online business, our physical bookstore feels like the heart of everything we do.
There’s something special about stepping away from the screen and being around people who care about the same things we do. Meeting customers in real life. Having conversations. Watching kids run around excited about books and toys. It’s a completely different kind of energy.
A full house at our Hobsonville bookstore for the Easter Eggstravaganza
Yesterday’s Easter Eggstravaganza in our Auckland bookstore was exactly that.
The vibe was amazing. Kids everywhere - hunting for golden eggs, laughing, running between activities. Parents watching from the sidelines, connecting over their children’s shared love of books. It felt less like a store and more like a proper family outing, and we loved being able to make that happen.
There was a line out the door for most of the day, with parking at a premium. We also loved seeing families roll in under pedal power and make use of our bike stand. Alastair had a constant queue for coffees and hot chocolates, Lizzy didn’t get a single break with face painting, and storytime with Heather Haylock was absolutely packed, with over 50 kids and their families squeezing into our cosy event space.
A line out the door, packed storytime, coffees flowing non-stop, and Lizzy face painting without a break!
The golden egg hunt was chaos in the best possible way. Books turned upside down, empty egg wrappers everywhere, and kids working together to hunt down clues.
Our shelves fully stocked for the day and golden eggs hidden throughout the store to be discovered!
It was also great to see some of our key publishers and commercial partners drop in throughout the morning - we really appreciate the support and encouragement for what we’re building. It was great to meet their families and children too! But what stood out most was meeting so many Aucklanders who are genuinely excited that we’ve set up here. That means a lot to us - especially as more and more of our team now live locally too. We love contributing to the community and feeling like our business matters to people.
Wonderful to have local authors, partners, and so many from the community and our team helping bring it all to life!
Online will always be core to what we do. It’s how we build scale and stay useful to customers all over New Zealand, no matter where they live.
But we also crave the human side of business.
Days like yesterday remind us why we do what we do. Helping parents create a great day out for their kids, seeing people connect through books, and simply being present in the community - it makes all the hard work feel worth it.
Plenty to keep the kids busy... slot cars, marble runs, egg painting, egg hunt, trains and more!
A special mention to Siobhan, who absolutely nailed her role as the Sylvanian Families Easter Bunny. At one point there was a 20 minute queue just to see her. It was hot under that suit but she stayed the distance and made sure as many kids as possible had their photo.
Siobhan in the Sylvanian Bunny suit and plenty of happy kids!
Stay tuned for future events in our bookstore - it’s safe to say we’ll be doing more of these!
Thanks, as always, for supporting Book Hero and making weekends like this one possible. Two years ago our business didn't exist, so it's humbling to see so many people show up and support what we do ❤️