An iconic and much-loved bookstore in Auckland is in danger of closing because the rent is about to rise for the first time in 30 years.
The owner of the Hard to Find Bookshop is hoping book lovers from around the world will help save what he considers to be an endangered species.
"It's a smell of an oily rag kind of business, we buy books, we sell books, we pay the wages, that's kind of all there is in it," owner Warwick Jordan told Newshub.
The little bookstore is a favourite for young and old alike, with a rickety old staircase and even a fireplace.
"We're kind of like an endangered species as I see it," Mr Jordan said.
The Hard to Find Bookshop was founded in Mr Jordan's garage back in 1983.
It moved into an Onehunga building five years later and now, after nearly three decades, it's in desperate need of a knight in shining armour.
"For a very long time we had a really good deal on the rent. But the sweetheart deal, if you like, has gone now and the landlord is talking about putting it up to more like commercial rates," Mr Jordan said.
Ideally, he would like to raise enough money to buy the building. Failing that, he's aiming for enough for a deposit and he'll borrow the rest.
If that's not possible, the goal is enough to move to another location.
He's set up a Givealittle page and has already raised nearly $24,000.
"There's a lot of people this shop really matters to," Mr Jordan said.
Donations are coming in from around the world, like regular customer Jacquelyne Taylor.
"This is a very magical place and you can spend far too long in here actually," she told Newshub.
"Everywhere you turn in the store there are more and more books. It's possible to literally get lost in it.
Mr Jordan's not sure quite how many books are stacked on these shelves, but he thinks it's somewhere around 90,000.
He's also not sure how long he's got before the rent goes up, but he's adamant this isn't the end of the story.
Newshub.
