Ketter and Bentley Revive DreamHaven Books

Legendary Minneapolis sf store DreamHaven Books, which has been operating on a limited schedule since 2012, will be open five days a week starting in April.

The change has been made possible by a new partnership between owner Greg Ketter and Alice Bentley, who is moving to Minneapolis to oversee and revitalize the store.

The duo have partnered before. They co-founded Chicago’s bookstore The Stars Our Destination in 1988. Bentley became sole owner in 1994 and carried on business until 2004 when she closed the Chicago store and moved to Seattle.

With Bentley arriving in early April, DreamHaven will be open Tuesdays through Saturdays, from Noon until 6:30 p.m.

“We’re both very excited to be working together again” says Ketter. “We’ve been friends forever and have always made a great team. There will be some visible changes throughout the store, as we fight about what’s right and what’s wrong with the current store, as well as less visible things.”

Bentley adds “I look forward to using my love of working retail and my delight with spreadsheets as ways to return to immersing myself in the world of speculative fiction. Expect many lists to emerge.”

DreamHaven Books is located at 2301 E. 38th St., Minneapolis, MN 55406

The full press release follows the jump.

DreamHaven Books

2301 E. 38th St.

Minneapolis, MN 55406

http://dreamhavenbooks.com      612-823-6161

DreamHaven is Back!

DreamHaven Books owner Greg Ketter is proud to announce a new partnership with an old partner. Alice Bentley, co-founder and former partner with Ketter in our Chicago bookstore, The Stars Our Destination, is now coming to Minneapolis to work with Ketter to allow DreamHaven to once again maintain a full schedule of open days.

Bentley and Ketter opened The Stars Our Destination in 1988 and in 1994 Bentley became sole owner of the store. She eventually closed the store in 2004 and moved to the Seattle area. Because she just couldn’t get book selling out of her system, she is moving to Minneapolis to help oversee and revitalize the local bookstore icon.

DreamHaven Books was founded by Ketter on April 1, 1977 in the north end of St. Paul. Moving to Minneapolis a year later, Ketter has weathered various location changes, recessions, changing buying habits, new technologies and his own changing tastes. With mounting debts and dwindling customers, he moved the store to “its final location” at 2301 E. 38th St. in South Minneapolis almost 7 years ago and decided to downsize and run the shop by himself. Nearly two years ago he reduced hours to only Wednesdays and “Saturdays he was in town” and did much of his business online and at various Science Fiction conventions around the country.

Now, with Bentley arriving in early April, the store will be open Tuesdays through Saturdays, from Noon until 6:30 pm.

“We’re both very excited to be working together again” says Ketter.  “We’ve been friends forever and have always made a great team. There will be some visible changes throughout the store, as we fight about what’s right and what’s wrong with the current store, as well as less visible things”.

First up will be stocking more new books again, something Ketter has let slip in favor of used and rare books. “The store has the largest inventory it’s ever had and we have to reduce it back to more manageable levels. So there will be special sales in the near future”.

Bentley adds “I look forward to using my love of working retail and my delight with speadsheets as ways to return to immersing myself in the world of speculative fiction. Expect many lists to emerge.”

For more information and updates, please check out the DreamHaven website (dreamhavenbooks.com )

4 thoughts on “Ketter and Bentley Revive DreamHaven Books

  1. I drive by Greg’s original location on a frequent basis for work, so hearing that I’ll soon be able to get to a store sounds like a great thing.

  2. Greg Ketter/DreamHeaven will be attending the Los Angeles Vintage Paperback Show on March 22nd.

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