Community dwells in safe and welcoming corners of every city, and for Georgetown, Texas, that corner is at Lark and Owl Booksellers. Lark and Owl is a beautiful, cozy space that houses not only countless books but a homely space to everyone who enters their doors. Founded in 2019 by Jane Estes and the help of nine other women, the bookstore has gradually grown into a staple of the Georgetown community and by proxy, Southwestern University’s community.

In the past, the bookstore and the university partnered with one another for various events ranging from poetry reading for a creative writing class to screening short films for a documentary film class. The dedication to connection is expansive and ever-growing, and foundational to the store itself; more L&O x SU collaborations will surely continue in the future!

Before Lark and Owl opened on April 7th in 2019, the only other bookstore in Georgetown went out of business some time prior. In an attempt to fill this gap, Jane hosted author signings and book parties at different people’s houses around the greater Austin area, hoping to recreate a more intimate setting of what BookPeople does. She said, “I love to talk to people about their work, and I love to talk to writers.” As a writer herself, she is always eager to hear others’ stories. This “salon” experience was a huge success regarding interest and turnout, but remained difficult to continue to plan and upkeep; Jane wanted something more.

Jane raised her family in Georgetown and worked in the area for some time. She was a dedicated freelance writer to the Williamson County Sun for eight years, and participated in the founding board for the Georgetown Arts Center. The community in Georgetown always served her positively and she wanted to not only give back to it but bring a whole new cornerstone to it with a brand new bookstore: “I realized we were the people we were waiting for.”

With a team of nine other women, Jane set out to find the perfect space for Georgetown’s newest bookstore. Originally she wanted to keep with the cozy, coffee shop, fairy-house vibe, but could not find any available houses close enough to the square. Soon enough though, the community latched on in interest, and the owners of Monument Cafe offered up the space that the bookstore now resides in, which actually used to be their farmer’s market area. Monument no longer needed it, and wanted to assist the passion project. The space brought brand new potential to the bookstore, and creativity flowed in design; One of the ten founding women, Misty Adere, told Jane that her brain “exploded in here” and instantly began planning.

They wanted to keep the space flexible, not confining it to one layout. The next time you visit, look closely at the middle bookshelves—they’re all on wheels! This aspect allows the booksellers to move the shelves around and make space for various events to seat up to ninety people. Such flexibility is not an advantage indie bookstores typically have, so the Lark and Owl crew is grateful for it.

The team of ten women has cycled through as it was not everyone’s intention to stay on the project forever. Jane is still the general manager, and the current Lark and Owl team is amazing! Everyone, past and present, is dedicated to the store and the community it creates, no matter the obstacles it faces. As Jane put it, “This is a very scrappy, resilient, creative, forward-thinking team.” The people are what make the place what it is; they are what make it a home.

The bookstore has struggled on and off since its opening due to COVID and the ongoing construction on Austin Ave. Therefore, the store has either been in startup mode or survival mode, and not quite yet thriving mode. What this shows, however, is that the people that keep this bookstore running are some of the strongest, hard-working people of the community and will not take ‘no’ for an answer. It is also a testament to the surrounding Georgetown community that has stepped up to help. The book community is constantly changing within the 21st century as people and trends are, and simply keeping the store open by adjusting to the community’s needs is quite the feat. The team adapts to the difficulties thrown at them and always finds a way to overcome them.

Some examples of the adjusting and adapting include the new used-book section, a strong partnership with bookshop.org, and supporting local small businesses. The used-book section is a great success due to how eco and budget friendly it is, and of course the rising popularity of buying used books. Moreover, bookshop.org is a fantastic platform they’ve collaborated with that is an essential and staple supporter to indie bookstores nationwide. You can also buy directly through Lark and Owl to the bookshop website and purchase their books through there; that purchase itself gives 30% of the money to Lark and Owl. Throughout the entire store, you can find truly unique pieces aside from books, such as jewelry, candles, stickers, pottery, and more. This is all the work of local small businesses, and Lark and Owl provides them a space to sell their products, which really allows the business owners to take back autonomy in their lives. By providing a space to sell and handling the purchases, the creators don’t have to do everything alone, and can in fact flourish without the stress of everything being on their shoulders.

At the heart of all of Lark and Owl’s past and present is a dedication to community, and a dedication to the diversity of Georgetown—there is a consistent hope to meet the needs of anyone who steps through the doors. Jane stated, “It was important to me personally that this store reflected this community […and that] when someone walked in this store, that they saw not only books with characters like them but authors of the same race, ethnicity, background, or age…all of the isms…no isms in here! [It was important to me] that they saw themselves in our retail—in our cards and artwork that we have for sale, especially in the children’s books.” The push of perseverance to serve all is what makes Lark and Owl the place that it is, a home to everyone who walks through the doors. It is a daily reminder that representation matters, everyone’s voice matters, and recognizing those things leads us to connection. Connection is what will save us in difficult times, not individually but collectively.

“It’s not hard to include everyone. In fact, it’s very easy to include everyone. And what happens when you include everyone is you have richer experiences, you have a more bonded community, you learn more. If you’re trying to keep people out, you can’t change their hearts,” Jane thoughtfully said. There is so much more to a space than what meets the eye; there are memories, there is joy, and there is comfort.

Lark and Owl is not just a bookstore, it is a home and a safe haven to those that will have it. For Southwestern students especially, Jane stated: want students to know that they are welcome here no matter where they are from. I want them to remember that their full range of human emotions are welcome here. […] We’d love to be their third place and I want them to know that they are welcome here, and this team is waiting for them to come through the doors.”