Essentials Magazine Essentials Spring 2019 | Page 4

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
“We try to bring unique to every level of our business.”
Danny Givens, Owner, Givens Books-Little Dickens
NAME
DANNY GIVENS
COMPANY
GIVENS BOOKS-
LITTLE DICKENS
TITLE
OWNER
BRIEF HISTORY
OF YOUR COMPANY:
My father opened Given Books in 1976.
(I was 16 and helped there.) The store
was 500 square feet in an old renovated
1930’s service station. My father had
moved Givens Books in 1979, and we
founded Little Dickens 13 years later
next door as a toy store/teacher store
due to the community need for both. In
1999 I bought my father’s business as
he retired and we built one large 16,000
square foot building 200 yards away to
house new and used books, children’s
books, toys and teacher supplies with a
1,000 square foot cafe. We were lucky
enough to find four acres down the road
in a great location.
WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB?
YEARS IN THE
EDUCATION BUSINESS
30
YEARS WITH GIVEN
BOOKS-LITTLE DICKENS
43
MEMBER SINCE
2006
4 essentials | spring 2019
I was a high school teacher for a
handful of years before opening Little
Dickens.
HOW DID YOU GET STARTED
IN THE ED MARKET?
Lynchburg was in deep need of a good
teacher store, but I didn’t want to lock
myself into ONE market; I knew the
community also needed a good toy
store. There were none of either. It
was before the Internet days, so I went
to the library to research. Trend, CD,
Ravensburger, Ambi toys, Galt and a
few dozen other vendors were the first I
ordered with. We opened the store and
I continued to teach for two years as it
got off the ground.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE BEST
ABOUT THE EDUCATIONAL
PRODUCTS INDUSTRY?
I think the educational market cross
pollinates well with our toys. We love
serving teachers and homeschoolers and
feel the large and small vendors in the
ed market provide a plethora of educa-
tional tools to help with the instructional
and play needs of children.
WHAT MAKES YOUR
COMPANY UNIQUE?
When customers walk into the store and
see flying Pteranodons, an 8-foot wall
clock, submarine windows on the back
wall 14 feet up and the counter covered
with 32 hand-painted figures; people
immediately notice there is something
unique. In addition to the vast array of
unusual products from nearly 500 ven-
dors, we have a game bar, a fireplace to
relax in front of, a cafe with large murals,
a large brick entry way, and art every-
where. It screams unique. We try to bring
unique to every level of our business.
We’ve won awards for the best toy store
and bookstore for the last decade.
WHAT IS YOUR TYPICAL DAY LIKE?
Like a lot of store owners, my day is
filled with interruptions, putting out fires
and trying desperately to feel produc-
tive. I love hunting for new products and
thinking creatively of ways to improve
business and selling on the floor. My
biggest challenge many days is to feel
focused and centered with the work and
in the zone.