Khristopher J. Brooks

The owners of the perennially embattled St. Mark’s Bookshop posted another plea yesterday for its supporters to put their money where their mouth is and buy some books.

“We know you value St. Mark’s Bookshop. We’re counting on you to help keep us here,” the owners wrote. “We need an increase in business in order to rebuild our inventory to the level most people have come to expect.”

The post reaffirms what co-owner Bob Contant told Publishers Weekly last week: that the store’s moment in the spotlight and subsequent rent reduction have not made it financially stable. In response to the grim news Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York promoted a cash mob at the shop last Sunday, which yielded $1,250 in an hour; three times the typical amount of revenue for that span of time.

The Bookshop isn’t the only bookstore in the neighborhood using the direct approach to attract customers. “A lot of people have discovered us, many have not,” reads an advertisement for East Village Books posted on Craigslist that later adds, “We will help you in from your car and direct you to parking.”