When Ariel and Simon Censor opened their tiny used bookshop — Little Yenta Books — in the back of a South Philly children’s dressmaking shop in February, they knew it was an unconventional setup.
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What the couple — in life and now books — could not know is just how fast they would outgrow the space.
And although they’re relinquishing the unofficial appellation as Philadelphia’s tiniest used book shop, the pair has moved their impressive literary thicket from their 150-square-foot loft space right next door into a full-sized rented storefront on Passyunk Avenue.
The problem was a great one: Business is booming.
“People were telling us that they would walk by because it was way too crowded and they couldn’t fit,” said Ariel Censor, sitting behind the counter of the new shop, located at 1912 E. Passyunk Avenue, home of the former Civil Stock General Store, which closed earlier this year. “We also just ran out of shelf space. We had way more books than we could fit.”
The popular used bookstore — the only one along Passyunk — has nearly tripled its titles in the new storefront, which they opened last month. That means a whole lot more of the popular and literary fiction, classics, vintage sci-fi, poetry, and rare books customers have been buying up.
“People really complimented our curation,” Censor, 27, said of the shop’s success. “People thought our taste was good, and our prices were good, and that they are really happy to have us.”
The couple — Haverford College grads, who live in the neighborhood — opened their initial tiny shop as a passion project, after holding used book pop-ups in South Philly bars.
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Situated, speakeasy-style, in a postage-stamp-sized loft above the Painted Lady children’s boutique, the 150-square-foot shop burst with over 1,500 titles. And quickly customers.
With its green-and-white striped awning, stained-glass lighting fixture, and charming decor, the new shop has a spacious, homey feel.
“One thing we got with the little shop is that people really liked that it wasn’t overwhelming,” said Censor. “They could look at every book. We have tripled the amount of books, but wanted to make it feel manageable and still have a real eye to curation. I’m really excited about the mix of modern and classics that we have.”
The expanded shop comes with expanded hours, with Little Yenta Books now open every day except Tuesday and Wednesday.
On a recent afternoon, Aine McCauley, 24, dropped in at the new shop on her way home from work. She perused the shelves before landing on a copy of André Aciman’s 2008 coming-of-age novel, “Call Me By Your Name.”
“It’s so awesome,” she told Censor of the shop. “You have every good book in here.”