After 1 Year, Newtown Book & Record Exchange Employee-Turned-Owner Reflects

NEWTOWN, PA — Last December, an employee who had worked at Newtown Book & Record Exchange for most of the prior 15 years took over ownership of the beloved local shop. Since then the store has celebrated its 40th birthday, and Chelsea Mitchell has been hard at work to ensure the record shop will stay in business.

"I feel so supported by longtime customers and by the community for continuing Bobbie Lewis’s legacy," she wrote in an email to Patch. "It hasn’t been without challenges, of course — but the work is too fun and rewarding to complain."

Lewis opened the shop in 1981, and the small store has since weathered the struggles of retailers like Amazon taking over much of the industry. Mitchell thinks local shops like the book and record exchange help people unplug.

"Not to get too philosophical but it’s important that we stop relying so heavily on screens and get back to basics now and then," she said. "Make the phone call instead of texting. Shop in your neighborhood instead of buying from Amazon. Spin the record instead of streaming. Maybe I’m just a thirty-something looking back on 16 years in a little shop, but I would love for time to slow down. And by the way, nothing slows you down like a record on the turntable and a well-loved chair."

While she may be looking to slow time down, Mitchell also noted how excited her younger patrons have been about records. She said she's seen more hip hop and pop records sold than previously, to an evolving vinyl audience.

"To me it felt like it was very rock/folk-centric for a long time, but the younger crowds want current artists of all kinds of music," Mitchell said. "That’s not to say they won’t also grab a copy of Abbey Road, but Phoebe Bridgers and Childish Gambino sold just as well as The Beatles this holiday season. It’s exciting!"

She's also been keeping the store's bookshelves full — her favorite read of 2021 was Leigh Bardugo's Shadow & Bone trilogy.

"[It's] such an original fantasy series with a world you quickly get sucked into," she said.

Moving into the new year and cozying up this January, Mitchell also had some treasured tunes to recommend.

"Anytime the weather turns cold I lean on my jazz collection to get me through," she said. "Monk’s Dream by Thelonius Monk, Blue Train and Traneing In by John Coltrane, and especially Kind of Blue by Miles Davis. I can’t explain why, but it’s food for the soul. It warms you up. Winter is the perfect time for introspection and jazz is the perfect music for introspection."

For Mitchell, the small local store offers a kind of warmth, too. She's been feeling that way since she started shopping there, even before becoming an employee.

"Ever since I began helping with live music and ordering for Record Store Day, I felt a great deal of responsibility to the shop," she said. "It made me feel useful and provided so much happiness for others. Even before I took over, I knew I needed the shop to always be here. It’s my second home."

She added, "Bobbie certainly did make her mark on State Street and I’m incredibly lucky she trusted me to take over."

Learn more about Newtown Book & Record Exchange online, or by visiting the shop at 102 S State St.

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