Listen Here
By Victoria Hansen, HansenV@Findlay.edu
After the 2023 closure of George House coffee, the North Main Street building has a new coffee shop in the form of Reading Grounds.
A combination coffee shop and bookstore, Reading Grounds hopes to become a part of the campus community.
“We hope to be a place to get away to off-campus,” owner Sabrina Rodabaugh said.
The owners were in no way affiliated or involved with George House, and it did not play into their choice of location.
“This building just worked so happened to work out, so we could divide the building in half,” Rodabaugh said. “Obviously, we both loved George House. We have one of their coffee cups and an old stool.”
The books for sale at the store were collected over time from libraries, yard sales, and even dumpsters before being put on the shelves of the store. Reading Grounds also offers a book buyback program, where patrons can bring one bag a week up to the size of a TJ Maxx reusable bag to the store to sell for store credit.
“We go through the books and whatever books that we take; you get a percentage of what we’re going to sell it for,” Rodabaugh said.
Books that cannot be sold are given for free to libraries, schools, or whatever groups can use them.
The idea for the shop came from when Rodabaugh would travel with her fiancé, Miranda Tippie to various coffee house bookstores.
“When we started dating, it was like, ‘Let’s go to a coffee shop that has a bookstore,’” Rodabaugh said. “Then one day we’re talking like, ‘Oh, we should start our own.’ [coffee shop with bookstore] Two years later, we own our own.”
Rodabaugh and Tippie visited over 30 other combination bookstores and coffee shops over two years to find design inspiration for their shop.
“We traveled all over and went to as many bookstore and coffee shops we could think of in the vicinity,” Rodabaugh said.
They eventually decided to decorate with plants and books, using muted greens and wood for the interior.
“I think the compliment we get the most is about the wall color,” Tippie said.
Rodabaugh and Tippie also own the gym in front of the building, Mind Body Fitness.
