{"id":235200,"date":"2026-04-17T04:21:59","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T04:21:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/235200\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T04:21:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T04:21:59","slug":"st-pete-man-wants-to-buy-long-shuttered-haslams-bookstore-and-hes-selling-500000-t-shirts-to-do-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/235200\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Pete man wants to buy long-shuttered Haslam\u2019s bookstore, and he\u2019s selling 500,000 t-shirts to do it\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"https:\/\/www.cltampa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Haslams-Books-cityofstpeteFlickr-scaled.png\"Haslam\u2019s Book Store in St. Petersburg, Florida on July 8, 2016. Credit: cityofstpete \/ Flickr<\/a><\/p>\n

Local artist Filipe Bergson<\/a> wants to sell enough t-shirts to bring back Haslam\u2019s Bookstore in St. Petersburg.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The iconic indie bookstore closed its doors back in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, and since then the 30,000-square-foot building has sat vacant at 2025 Central Ave.\u2014along with the nearly 300,000 new and used books still sitting inside.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Some estimates value the property at close to $3.7 million, but that doesn\u2019t discourage Bergson, who can be seen posted up every Saturday in front of the building selling his custom-made $25 shirts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cYea, so, we have about 499,956 more t-shirts to sell if we are going to buy the property outright ourselves,\u201d Bergson told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay. \u201cBut the more I learn about the owners, and the fact that they have yet to sell, re-open, or give away the books still inside, it seems like the Haslam\u2019s are not motivated by money, which is something we have in common.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"FilipeFilipe Bergson outside Haslam\u2019s book store in St. Petersburg, Florida. Credit: c\/o Filipe Bergson<\/p>\n

Bergson, a St. Pete native, says he grew up with the store and has fond memories of exploring the aisles as a kid with his dad, and later as a young adult.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe reason I loved Haslam\u2019s was because it was a portal to new ways of life, to new interests, hobbies, obsessions, and to new friends\u2014but it was also a portal powered by the past,\u201d explained Bergson to CL. \u201cIf the previous owner of the book hadn\u2019t taken it to Haslam\u2019s then I never would have been able to pick it up. And it was a great place for first dates.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2021, Haslam\u2019s co-owner Ray Hinst told Gabrielle Calise<\/a> that he wasn\u2019t sure what exactly he wanted to do with the property, which has been selling books since 1933.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cFor a variety of personal and professional reasons Suzanne and I are still undecided about reopening the bookstore to the public,\u201d Hinst explained. \u201cWe appreciate everyone\u2019s interest and are trying to consider all aspects of the situation. In the meantime our kitties are very happy in their new homes in the area.\u201d<\/p>\n

Creative Loafing was unable to reach Hinst for comment. <\/p>\n

Haslam\u2019s certainly has a valuable footprint. The section of Central Avenue that the bookstore calls home is growing, and is filled with popular bars and restaurants, as well as new condominiums and developments.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Bergson believes there\u2019s a chance that the bookstore\u2019s owners are more interested in breathing life back into the storied building that was once a popular hangout for bookworms, cats and popular novelist and beat poet Jack Kerouac, who lived three miles away in Disston Heights before he died.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have this gut feeling that they are looking for a \u2018Mr. Right\u2019 to re-open the bookstore,\u201d said Bergson. \u201cAs far as I know, most developers have tried to buy the property to turn it into something else; no one to my knowledge has ever just set up shop in front of the bookstore with the intention of carrying a legacy forward. If some donors are open to helping out, we would welcome them with open arms.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you\u2019d like to help, the shirts, stickers and a zine available at spnchspnch.com<\/a>, or at Berson\u2019s pop-ups, which happen every Saturday from 9 a.m.-3 p.m in front of Haslam\u2019s.<\/p>\n

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This article appears in Apr. 16 \u2013 22, 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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