Independent Thinker

Running the Harvard Book Store is literally a dream come true for Jeff Mayersohn.

Though an innovator in technology throughout his career, Mayersohn always loved books and aspired to own and operate a bookstore with his wife, Linda Seamonson. Several years ago, he decided to semiretire and looked into pursuing his dream. He joined the American Booksellers Association, went to bookselling school, and attended his first booksellers' convention, Book Expo America.

Upon hearing of the sale of the Harvard Book Store, a Cambridge icon since 1932, and having been a customer there for almost 40 years, his decision to move forward was "immediate." He says that though his "retirement model was a nice, quiet bookstore where I had a lot of time to read and the Harvard Book Store is the opposite of that, I couldn't believe my fortune. It is one of the premiere independent book stores in the country, if not the world."

The 76-year-old store, which changed hands from the Harvard Square fixture Frank Kramer, has retained its "stellar staff," helmed by general manager Carole Horne.

Mayersohn believes firmly in the role that the store plays in the community. "More and more people are placing a premium on customer service," he explains, "and having a big truck deliver a little paperwork flies in the face of the green movement. These are trends which will move the pendulum back in favor of local bookselling."

For now, Mayersohn's enthusiasm speaks, well, volumes for the store's future. "I have to pinch myself every now and then," he says after officially becoming the new owner in October. "I look forward to meeting all of the customers and I'm reluctant to pick out my favorite upcoming author event."