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HOUSE OF JAMES bookstore has recently undergone
significant expansion.
Owner Lando Klassen started the company in 1973 in
Mission. It moved to the Little Oak Mall in Abbotsford in 1983, and then to
its current location in 1997.
“It’s interesting,” Klassen told BCCN, “years before we
moved here, I noticed our present property, it was a Nissan dealership, and
thought what a good place it would be for us.”
Despite the economic downturn and the challenges all
independent booksellers are facing, Klassen has thrived.
Indeed he has diversified the store’s role into
what he describes as “a place for social gathering, not just selling
stuff. Retail today needs to be fun; it’s about the
experience.”
Klassen added 5,400 square feet to the existing 7,200;
most of the expansion is to provide a coffee house and stage area.
 | | Sheree Plett performs at the newly renovated House of James coffeehouse. |
“The plan is to have live music every Saturday;
that need not be just gospel.”
The 25 by10 foot stage area is equipped with state of
the art sound, and Klassen hopes to present all genres of music, in a
central Abbotsford location.
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“Four years ago we envisaged expanding the
building but took our time – it took three designs,” he said.
The eventual design also incudes an expanded used
books area and a children’s toy section.
House of James also facilitates an annual Blues
Festival in Chilliwack July 31 and its rentable board room is used by the
book discussion club ‘Rethink.’
The grand opening of the expanded facility is March 28
with a ribbon cutting at 10 am.
For details of upcoming events contact:
www.houseofjames.com.
– PB
March 2009
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