Biz Bits: BookPeople turning chapter on 50 years

Pulitzer Prize-nominated writer Kim Barnes is one of four authors headlining BookPeople of Moscow’s 50-year anniversary celebration at 6 p.m. Nov. 15.

A retired University of Idaho professor, Barnes has been a fixture on the national literary scene since her 1997 memoir “In the Wilderness: Coming of Age in an Unknown County,” was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.

Alexandra Teague, the author of “The Principles Behind Flotation,” a young adult novel, is one of the three writers who will be signing books with Barnes.

The others are Eija Sumner, author of children’s books including “Crocodile Hungry,” and Annette Pimental, who specializes in history books for young adults such as “Mountain Chief,” about the founding of the National Park Service.

BookPeople’s anniversary coincides with an important transition at the business, an anchor store along Moscow’s Main Street.

Breanne Pickens, an aspiring author, became part owner of the store this year. She joins business partners Carol Price and Steffen Werner.

Price and Werner, along with two others, acquired BookPeople from Robert Green in 2011. The two others no longer have ownership stakes in the business.

Pickens co-manages the store with Price.

Together they are striving to create personalized shopping experiences while selling books at its brick-and-mortar location and website at prices that are often the same as corporate competitors, Pickens said.

Pickens credits Price and her ability to spot excellent titles not on everyone’s radar for making BookPeople unique.

Werner, an associate professor of psychology and communications at UI, owns the building at 521 S. Main St. where BookPeople is located.

A Boise native and UI graduate who holds a bachelor’s degree in English, Pickens noticed BookPeople not long after her arrival in Moscow in 2013.

“I liked the selection of books,” she said. “I don’t usually go into bookstores knowing what I want to buy. It’s just nice to browse and figure out what I’m in the mood for reading.”

One book Pickens discovered at BookPeople before she became an employee was “Miss Iceland,” one of many BookPeople carries that were first printed in other languages.

“This book (I could tell) the author has not had the same experiences that I have,” Pickens said. “It was really great to have it take me by surprise.”

Set in the 1960s, the novel is about a woman named after a volcano, who is trying to get her work published.

“It encapsulates a lot of the problems I had when I tried to write,” Pickens said. “It talked about the wonderful parts, the times where it just clicks and you’re like, ‘That’s such a good feeling.’ ”

Pickens has held a number of jobs at the store. Her first in 2017 was as the leader of its advisory board of children and teens. The group meets once a month and discusses advance copies of books to help the store make buying decisions.

When books are early enough in the publishing process, constructive feedback sometimes is incorporated into the final versions. Their reviews may be used on the back covers of books and promotional materials.

Since then, Pickens’ role at the store has expanded. In addition to her management duties, she’s now responsible for merchandising, arranging the very displays that captivated her when she first entered the store.

“There’s something to be said I think for real people making recommendations based on what you like,” Pickens said. “We try to make the store really safe and welcoming for everyone.”

BookPeople is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Its website is bookpeopleofmoscow.com.

Thai Taste open again, but owners are looking to sell

LEWISTON -- Lewiston’s Thai Taste is back, at least for now, after a 2½-month hiatus while the owners handled family issues.

The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday at 1410 21st St.

Other than the hours, everything is the same at the restaurant that opened more than 20 years ago, including the menu, said John Bollinger, who founded the business with his wife, Aut Bollinger.

Pad thai, beef and broccoli, and fried rice are some of the most popular dishes, he said.

“We’re running flat out,” Bollinger said. “It happens every time we come back from our excursions.”

Aut Bolinger, who is from Thailand, cooks all the food, he said.

“My wife is an exceptional chef,” Bolllinger said. “She keeps traditional Thai cooking. She hasn’t changed.”

Most of the ingredients are available through sources in the United States, but they travel to Thailand at least once a year and bring back a handful of items that aren’t available here, he said.

The two met through a mutual friend and opened the business not long after they were married. At the time he worked as a technician at Pathologist’s Regional Laboratory, a position he has since retired from.

Even though Thai Taste is open, the Bollingers are seeking a new chapter in their lives.

“The business is for sale,” Bollinger said. “If someone wants to buy it, we’ll sell it.”

His wife is willing to train new owners, he said.

The property is listed at $575,000, said Leonard Ferrigno, the agent with Grand Realty in Clarkston who has the listing.

The price includes the business, lot, building, appliances, furniture and kitchen equipment, he said.

“Owning a restaurant is a full-time job,” Bollinger said. “You’re married to it. We’ve decided we want to do something else.”

Clearwater Paper reports $90 million in income during first three quarters

Clearwater Paper finished September with net income of $90.1 million for the first three quarters of its 2023 fiscal year.

Net income for July, August and September was $36.6 million, compared with $20.6 million for the same time last year, according to a news release issued last week.

“We had an outstanding third quarter which came in at the higher end of our expectations, driven by good operational performance in both businesses and continued strength in tissue,” said Clearwater Paper President and CEO Arsen Kitch in the news release.

Clearwater Paper is one of the largest employers in Lewiston, where it has its biggest manufacturing complex, the only place where it makes pulp, paperboard and tissue.

The tissue is sold as toilet paper, paper napkins, paper towels and facial tissue under store brands. Its paperboard is used in packaging and paper dishware.

“Demand remained strong in tissue,” Kitch said, “while we balanced paperboard supply and demand to manage inventory levels.”

SEL’s Moscow factory earns award from Idaho Business Review

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories’ new 162,00-square-foot printed circuit board factory in Moscow was named the 2023 Top Project of the Year by the Idaho Business Review.

The plant was selected from 36 construction projects that were judged based on their ability to overcome challenges, adhere to budget and time constraints, and provide quality products, according to the news release.

SEL’s employees worked hard to get the $100 million plant with 55 employees completed without any financial assistance from the government, said SEL Founder and President Edmund O. Schweitzer III in the news release.

“We committed to each other to do it right, and now we are safely producing the highest-quality printed circuit boards in the cleanest plant, using the fewest resources that science and engineering afford us today,” he said.

SEL is the largest private employer in the region. The company invents, designs and builds digital products and systems that protect power grids. The technology prevents blackouts and allows customers to improve power system reliability and safety.

Williams may be contacted at ewilliam@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2261.