Like a lot of small businesses in our region, Firestorm has been in financial distress for the last year. Hurricane Helene was our tipping point, but local cost of living increases, inflation, and higher occupancy costs are huge contributors. In simple language: our sales are down, our costs are (way) up, and capitalism is the worst.

With less than $15k in financial buffer left, we've projected that our co-op will no longer have the resources needed for normal operations by the end of July.

⚠️ What We're Doing

Over recent months, we've analyzed our situation and explored possible interventions. We're planning to modestly increase store hours, refresh our Sustainers Program, explore new advertising opportunities, better promote our bulk / B2B sales, research grants for unfunded work done by our members, and look for new pop-up gigs. More immediately, we're planning a big sale for mid-April and we've requested and received a temporary reduction to our mortgage.

Our hope is that a handful of short-term measures will buy us time to pursue the longer-term shift in revenue needed to stabilize Firestorm. If we don't succeed, our nuclear option is a cut to pay. As a horizontal co-op we set a payrate democratically, so no changes take place without buy-in from our whole team, but moving away from a living wage runs counter to our collective health.

⚠️ What You Can Do!

If Firestorm surviving and thriving is important to you, we welcome your support. Here are a few ways to pitch in:

🌈 Buy your next book from us, or tell someone who buys books about us! Not a physical media person? We also sell audiobooks through Libro.fm.

🌈 Join our Sustainers Program, starting at $10/mo! Members receive discounts on books and can access free shipping, a monthly book subscription, and other great perks.

🌈 If you work in an organization that coordinates book-related programs, reach out to us about bulk purchasing (we offer discounts!)

We extend our huge appreciation to everyone who is already supporting our co-op financially, or otherwise! We've only made it this far because of you.

#WorkerCoop #FeministBookstore #SolidarityEconomy

The morning Hurricane Helene hit Asheville, members of our collective sat in the dark, listening to the howling wind and the crack of huge trees falling all around. When we emerged Friday evening to take stock, a cardboard sign on our co-op’s door read “Community meeting here, Saturday at 2pm. Let’s talk about how we can take care of each other + community.” That first autonomous act by an anonymous neighbor set the stage for the week, with Firestorm becoming a container for other people’s brilliant, beautiful, and generous self-organizing.

About forty people attended the first meeting. Nearly four hundred attended the next one. The gatherings, now a daily anchor, have generated a multitude of connections and volunteer powered projects. Before city officials had finished assessing the damage, community members were sharing supplies, doing wellness checks, and serving hot meals. Over the next few days, things became more organized. Anarchist arborists collected chainsaws and dispatched crews to clear roads for trapped residents; activists mobilized to build long term water distribution systems capable of delivering 6k gallons/day; bike punks offered free repair clinics; a farmer began driving regular water supply loops to Firestorm from a nearby spring; and an enthusiastic DIY-er set up a tent to distribute dry toilets made from affordable materials.

In the midst of this anarchic moment, Firestorm isn’t setting the agenda or directing anyone—we’re offering a space that welcomes independent initiative, we’re supporting the exchange of critical information, and we’re modeling a do-it-ourselves approach that’s responsive, experimental, and human-scale.

Yes, government and NGO aid is now flowing into the region—but the work of caring for one another continues to be done by neighbors, grassroots organizations, small businesses, and activists. It’s done voluntarily, with thousands of autonomous actions synchronized through a shared solidarity. For a brief moment, the logic of the capitalist market is suspended, care is given freely, and everyone contributes what they can.

It’s a strange paradox that the utopia we dream of becomes most visible in the dark.

#HurricaneHelene #MutualAid #Anarchism #Cooperativism #MutualAidDisasterRelief #FeministBookstore #FirestormCoop