Meet Our Team!

We’re Niche Book Bar, a passionate bookstore focused on Black books in underrepresented genres. In addition to serving up Black Books, we will also feature a small café and wine menu! Our team of three behind this awesome literary experience launched into the realm of Brick and Mortar with ambitious dreams and ready to hit the ground running! However, our path to opening has been met with significant challenges due to unforeseen contractor issues.

Proprietress

“Cetonia is the founder of Niche Book Bar. She is a lover of speculative fiction and that new book smell. Cetonia is also the Author of The Misadventures of Toni Macaroni children’s book series and hopes to spread the joy of a good book!”

Head Librarian

“Lauren is a Milwaukee native and lifelong reader. She believes in the power of books to transport, transcend, and educate. Her favorite genres include high fantasy, thrillers, and political nonfiction.”

Librarian

“Joshua likes technology subjects like engineering, biology, and computer engineering. Is he a self-proclaimed scientist and the “well actually” kinda guy? You’ll have to come in and find out! Visit him for your nerdy needs!”

Here’s our story:

Niche was incorporated in 2020, just a couple of months before COVID-19 changed the way we experienced our daily lives. With physical locations closing down all around, I (Cetonia), the owner and founder of Niche pivoted to a book bicycle!

My journey to brick and mortar began in 2021! After having no luck finding a lease that fit in the Historic Bronzeville neighborhood,  I won a competitive proposal to buy a vacant city-owned property! Niche Book Bar had finally found a home!

Once the dust settled and 1937 N MLK Drive was finally ours, the real trouble began. In 2022, the contractor chosen to complete the project ran off with 40% of the funds. The contractor was known in the city and the money was kept with a title company. Many steps were taken to safeguard the money, but unfortunately, a negative outcome still happened and we entered and still are in litigation. After asking the community for tried and true contractors, we were connected with another option. We checked their usual licensing and
insurance and started with a pleasant working relationship. Unfortunately, this too ended badly for us. Though malicious intent was not the theme of the story this time, It turned out our project was severely underbid, mismanaged, and some work was found to not have been done to industry and city standards.

I have learned so much through this process of hard knocks and luckily, have a team and community support still behind the opening of Niche Book Bar! I worked with a consultant and after 3 months, I was finally able to find the right contractor to get our doors open! This has been a rough journey, but as booksellers, we are built Hard Cover tough!

Why We Need Your Help:

This series of setbacks has caused a critical funding shortage, delayed our grand opening, and is preventing us from fulfilling the full vision for Niche Book Bar! We are determined to open our doors and share our love and centering of Black books with our community. Your contribution through this Indiegogo campaign will bridge the funding gap and allow us to complete essential renovations! Here is the breakdown:

Electrical: 20,050

Drywall: $11,140

Doors:$7,180

Rough Carpentry: 6,090

Drop Ceiling: $4,200

FINISH CARPENTRY: 5200

Insulation: 1,200

Grand Total:55,060

Transparency and Gratitude:

We understand your trust is valuable. We’ll provide regular updates on how your contributions are used, showcasing our progress towards opening Niche Book Bar!

With your support, we can overcome this hurdle and transform Niche Book Bar from a dream into a vibrant reality. We envision our space brimming with books and readers, and of course, a bit of wine!

Help us turn the page on this challenge and open a new chapter for Niche Book Bar!

Other Ways You Can Help

• Ask folks to get the word out and make some noise about our campaign.
• Share! Share! Share! Across any platform you have
• Engage with our posts on Instagram and Facebook
• Offer your handiwork services like painting, flooring, or furniture moving!