Johnson County book, plant shop reopens after fire forced months-long closure
For the past three months, Kate and Justin Wieners’ home has been packed with books, plants and other merchandise from Monstera’s Books after a fire forced their small business to temporarily close.
Monstera’s Books opened in March last year at 7930 Floyd St. in Overland Park, tucked in the old Wyldewood Cellars building downtown. A fire at the Mexican restaurant next door Aug. 13 felt like a gut-punch after “rolling the dice” on a new bookstore — a venture some were skeptical of last year, said Justin Wieners.
Flames never reached their side of the building, but smoke and water damaged books, plants and other items beyond repair. The store had to start over.
“It’s been a long summer,” Justin Wieners said. “Even though everything was intact after the fire, we had to completely clean out the store. ... Even the drywall and walls had to come out. It was down to bare studs.”
The Wieners’ home became a makeshift storage facility, where boxes overflowed from the garage and occupied spare rooms. Kate and Justin went on to document their journey of re-opening in a blog, which showed photos of the building’s progress and their efforts to still fill orders.
The Wieners hired a restoration company that cleaned and refinished their bookshelves. They bought an ozone machine to pull the smoke smell out of books and other things that were smelly. Employees helped with the long process of restocking items and preparing them for sale.
“The insurance process takes a while, and so we needed to figure out a way to bridge the gap,” Justin Wieners said.
Monstera’s saw some early success after they first opened, and gained loyal customers who rallied around the business when it began renovations, Justin Wieners said.
A community had already been born around the love of books and the community space that Monstera’s Books created.
For about six weeks, Monstera’s held pop-up book sales under a tent outside their building. It helped some with revenue, but they eventually had to shift into reopening mode, Justin Wieners said.
With the building out of order, Monstera’s Books store manager, Laramie Appenfeller, 34, helped continue to fill orders, organize inventory and do just about anything else it took to reopen.
In his blog, Justin Wieners said Appenfeller worked from the Wieners’ spare bedroom, kitchen counter, and her Toyota as she hand-delivered books around Kansas City.
At the store’s grand reopening Saturday, Appenfeller said the motivation behind her work at Monstera’s is to build community. It’s not just about the books, she said.
“We did a lot of stuff trying to meet people throughout those three months,” Appenfeller said. “I was still doing drop-offs and meeting people on their lunch breaks to get them books. But it wasn’t really about the books.”
“It was just about wonderful people,” she said. “And I think that’s what sets us apart from a lot of places. People feel that the second they walk in.”
Customers flock to Monstera’s for reopening
Saturday’s reopening began with a ribbon cutting ceremony with the city at 8 a.m.
The store held raffles where people could win a private shopping experience, free entry to a terrarium plant class, and Monstera’s Books gift cards.
For most of the morning, the store’s small parking lot was filled with vehicles and the store was bustling with foot traffic from downtown Overland Park.
One customer who stopped by Saturday was Meg Miller, accompanied by her two sons, Zayn and Amyr. They picked through a used books shelf sitting out front as other customers filed in and out of the doors behind them.
“I was so sad they had a fire and had to shut down,” Miller said, wearing a green and white Monstera’s Books sweater. “We came here all the time, and we’re so happy to be back.”
A glowing green book-shaped sign near the front door at Monstera’s reads, “Locally owned,” helping newcomers find a homegrown operation in Kansas City’s saturated market for book sales.
Inside, customers find an oasis of vibrant green Monstera plants and a sea of stories to delve into.
Standing beside a table of plants on Saturday was Jennifer Houch, 44, who said she and her English teacher husband are regulars at Monstera’s.
“Me and my husband really like coming here, and we try to at least every other month,” Houch said. “We’re actually from Liberty, but its worth the drive.”
Justin Wieners said the Overland Park community has showed his family love and support during the grueling months of renovation, and he’s happy to be back doing what he loves.
Whether it was free breakfast burritos from another small business owner, to kind messages and helping hands, their support allowed Monstera’s Books to rebuild.
“It was more of like a family reunion,” Justin Wiener said of the reopening.
“When people walk in, we say ‘Welcome in,’ and they’re like, ‘Welcome to you. So glad you’re back,’” he said. “Which feels really good.”
