2025 in Review
Grand Opening: May 17, 2025
Snowfort, is it a bookstore? Yes. A children’s space? Also yes. A place for readings, music, conversation, and community? Definitely. A building that required an enormous amount of work—physical, logistical, emotional—to become what it is? Very much so.
This post is an attempt to take stock of our first year. It’s not exhaustive, and it’s not polished into a grant report or prospectus. It’s simply a look back at what happened, what we built, and what you—our community—made possible.
Adam and Amy pictured with Ike, the Westport Town Supervisor, and Alyssa, the Westport-Wadhams Community Alliance president.
A Year of Events, Conversations, and Gatherings
Throughout the year, Snowfort hosted a wide range of programs—readings and book launches, kids’ events, book clubs, concerts, workshops, and social gatherings. Partnerships were central, especially with John Brown Lives! and Meadowmount, whose musicians filled the bookstore with extraordinary sound. Some events were singular and joyful, like our Burns Supper and a midsummer ice cream social; others, including the holiday party, were intimate, member-only celebrations that deepened our sense of community.
Our events, by the numbers
Total Number of Events
Estimated Total Attendance
Kids and Family Events`
MLK Jr. Day, Stories And …, Papermaking, Playgroup & Soup
Book Club Events
Silent Book Club, Counternarratives, Fiction Book Club
Readings
Emily J. Smith, Molly Johnsen, Adam Hughes, Bill McKibben and more
Music and Performance
The Cong Quartet, Jude Brothers, Meadowmount School, Bell Fire SpeakEazy
Socials
Burns Night, Grand Opening, Letterpress Unveiling, Ping Pong
Building Projects in 2025
Our work continued with some building updates. It was an extremely productive year: we renovated the basement, upgraded electrical and lighting systems, and addressed safety and accessibility throughout the building. Exterior work, drainage improvements, and a new porch made the space more welcoming, while interior upgrades—including cooling and relocating the letterpress—made the building more functional, durable, and ready for long-term use.
Exterior
- Built a new front porch designed to match the back deck, with accessible ramp
- Installed new gutters and ice blocking
- Finished painting the building, including windows
- Installed Snowfort “blade” sign
- Graded the parking lot and added gravel
Basement
- Moved in and set up the letterpress studio
- Rewired the electrical lines, including installing a logical switch system and removing a ton of outdated wiring
- Removed old machinery and a scary bathroom
- Installed a new full bathroom and laundry machines
- Deep cleaned, removing a century’s worth of accumulated dirt and dust and cobwebs
Other
- Added smart lighting to the bookstore shelves
- Ran electricity to the SkiDoo shop
- Installed a mini-split system
- Made general improvements to the apartments, like new wifi and new shelving around a hot water heater
Bob from Artisan Sign & Design installs our blade sign, made of Hugh-Density Urethane, meant to last forever
Sales Report
Sales in 2025 reflected both the breadth of Snowfort’s offerings and the strength of a few core pillars. Rather than relying on a single product or category, revenue was distributed across books, memberships, and merchandise—pointing to a healthy mix of discovery, loyalty, and repeat engagement.
Items in Inventory
Total Transactions
Top 5 Items
Percent of Total Revenue
- Small Drawer Membership 5%
- The Unlikely Thru-Hiker (Derick Lugo) 2.3%
- Big Drawer Membership 2.2%
- Uncategorized 2%
- Regular Membership 1.6%
$2207
Payment Processing Fees
Mailing List Subscribers
Instagram Followers
Members
Drawer Members
Snowfort’s revenue was anchored by nonfiction and fiction, with children’s books and memberships forming strong secondary pillars. A wide range of other categories collectively made up nearly a fifth of sales, reflecting a diverse, well-balanced bookstore rather than reliance on any single niche.
Goal for 2026: improve product categorization, to eliminate that “Uncategorized” section.
%
Nonfiction
- The Unlikely Thru-Hiker – by Derick Lugo
- Here Comes the Sun – by Bill McKibben
- The Serviceberry – by Robin Wall Kimmerer
- The Constitution
- Separation of Church and Hate – by John Fugelsang
%
Fiction
- James – by Percival Everett
- Nothing Serious – by Emily J Smith
- Parable of the Sower – by Octavia E. Butler
- Heart the Lover – by Lily King
- The Mighty Red – by Louise Erdrich
%
Uncategorized
Oops! These items were either “Custom Amounts” or put into the system without categories, which happens when our POS, Square, moves faster than we do. A big seller from this area was our Honk If You Love Westport bumper sticker.
%
Children's Books
- If You Can See the Dark – by Timothy Mudie & Jenny Ward
- Bog Myrtle – by Sid Sharp
- Cousins! by Laura Lavoie
- Little Witch Hazel by Phoebe Wahl
- Rain Makes Applesauce by Julian Scheer
%
Memberships
We love our members! Our biggest seller by profit was the Small Drawer Membership, while the Regular Membership sold the most quantity. We look forward to continuing to develop our membership perks and benefits.
Gratitude
Snowfort exists because of people.
A huge thank you to our staff members Sadie and Kathy, who kept the space running smoothly and the customers happy.
Thank you to Luke, Al, Anitarae, and Rachelle for the countless hours of labor, care, and problem-solving that made the building what it is. And thank you to Rich Stockwell Contracting, Artisan Sign and Design, and Hometown Electric for helping to turn a 100-year-old building into the amazing habitat that it has become.
Thank you to our residents JJ Booth, Josh, Derick, and Rupert, whose presence shaped the year in ways both visible and subtle.
Most of all, thank you to everyone who came through the doors—to read, listen, bring their kids, try something new, or simply sit quietly for a while. In 2025, Year One showed us that Snowfort can be many things at once. We’re grateful to be here, and we’re looking forward to what comes next.
—Adam & Amy