Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library

What Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library does

Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (founded 1946) that operates semiannual book sales (May and October) as the primary fundraising arm for the Tompkins County Public Library and the Finger Lakes Library System. Operating from an owned warehouse at 509 Esty Street, Ithaca, NY (purchased 1991 and renamed the Regina C. Lennox Book Sale Building in 2017), it functions as a community-driven used-book retailer with all inventory sourced free via public donations and all labor supplied by 200+ active volunteers.

Its product surface is narrow and event-driven: a multi-day general book sale floor priced at roughly half the comparable going rate; a specialized Collector's Corner for rare books, first editions, vinyl records, artwork, ephemera, toys, and video games priced at $50+; end-of-sale Dime Day ($0.10 per item) and Bag Day ($1 per grocery bag) clear-the-floor mechanisms; and a year-round Donations Program. The volunteer program covers reception, sorting, pricing, cashiering, and float roles. A blog ("Our Books Have Great Stories") provides content marketing but no proprietary technology is disclosed.

The revenue model is effectively one channel — bi-annual event retail — augmented by a residual partnership with Zoom Books that resells unsold inventory online and returns a percentage of proceeds. Proceeds fund grants to the Tompkins County Public Library, the Finger Lakes Library System, literacy nonprofits, public and school libraries in Tompkins County, and educational grants for residents pursuing library degrees. There are no institutional investors, no funding rounds, and no paid headcount beyond the 1–10 staff indicated in firmographics; pricing is published transparently on the website and special-day segmentation (member pre-sale, Seniors 60+, Students 16+, not-for-profit free selection) targets differentiated community segments.

Name

Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library

Legal name

Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library

Website

https://booksale.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that runs semiannual book sales (May and October) at its Ithaca, NY warehouse, using donated inventory and 200+ volunteers to raise funds for the Tompkins County Public Library and the Finger Lakes Library System.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Used Book Retail

NAICS

Book Retailers and News Dealers (4592)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Used, Rare & Antiquarian Bookstores (CRALAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Libraries, Archives & Special Collections (BPAGAHAF)

Keywords

• Used book sales
• Nonprofit fundraising
• Community book donation
• Rare book collectibles
• Library support services

Headquarters

HQ city

Ithaca

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Book Sale Proceeds: Revenue generated from bi-annual book sales (May and October). Books are donated free to the organization and sold at discounted prices. The organization prices items at approximately half the comparable going rate for collectible items. Main floor prices decrease as sales progress.
2. Unsold Book Resale (Zoom Books): Unsold books are delivered to Zoom Books, which donates some to charities fighting illiteracy and sells others via online store. A percentage of proceeds returns to the Friends.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The organization operates bi-annual book sales (May and October) at a warehouse in Ithaca, NY, selling donated books, media, and collectibles to the public. Proceeds from sales fund the Tompkins County Public Library, the Finger Lakes Library System, and local literacy initiatives. The organization also maintains a specialized Collector's Corner for rare and antiquarian items, accepts community book donations, and runs a volunteer-driven operation.

Product overview

Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library operates a book sale organization with two main products: bi-annual Book Sales (May and October) and a Collector's Corner specializing in rare items. The Book Sales serve as the primary fundraising arm, offering donated books, media, and collectibles to the public. The Collector's Corner provides curated rare and antiquarian materials. Supporting offerings include a Donations Program that accepts community contributions of books and media, a Volunteer Program engaging over 200 community members, and a Blog featuring literary content about books and collections.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bi-Annual Book Sales
• Collector's Corner

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Friends of TCPLcoreOthersThe Book Sale is the fundraising arm of the Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library. The bi-annual book sales are the main source of funding for the Friends organization, which supports library programs and grants.
• Tompkins County Public Library (TCPL)coreOthersProceeds from book sales benefit the Tompkins County Public Library. The library receives grants from the Friends organization. TCPL logo appears on the organization's materials.
• Finger Lakes Library System (FLLS)coreOthersProceeds from book sales benefit the Finger Lakes Library System. FLLS logo appears on the organization's materials.
• Zoom BooksminorOthersUnsold books are delivered to Zoom Books after each sale. Zoom Books donates some books to charities dedicated to fighting illiteracy and sells others via their online store. A percentage of proceeds from these sales comes back to the Friends to support libraries and charitable organizations in Tompkins County.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• AbeBooks: Global online marketplace for used, rare, and out-of-print books, owned by Amazon. Comparable as a used/rare book sales platform, particularly relevant to the Collector's Corner segment, but operates as a digital intermediary rather than a direct seller.
• Half Price Books: U.S. chain of over 125 retail stores buying and selling used books, music, movies, and games. Comparable in retail-channel used book selling, though operates as a for-profit chain rather than a volunteer nonprofit.
• ThriftBooks: Largest online seller of used books in the U.S., operating a national marketplace across used, new, and rental titles. Comparable as a large-scale used book retailer, but competes in a much broader digital channel than the Tompkins County in-person model.

Direct peers

• Strand Bookstore: Iconic independent used bookstore in New York City with a massive inventory of new, used, and rare books. Closely comparable as a used/rare book retailer relying on volume inventory and a strong collector customer base, though it operates as a for-profit.
• Powell's Books: Independent used bookstore chain based in Portland, OR, known for its "City of Books" flagship carrying used, new, and rare titles. Directly comparable as a scaled used/rare book retailer with a strong in-person collector following.
• Friends of the San Francisco Public Library: Operates a large-scale used book sale (and bookstore) as the primary fundraising arm for the San Francisco Public Library. Directly comparable model: 501(c)(3) nonprofit, donated inventory, volunteer-staffed sales, proceeds benefiting a county library system.
• Friends of the Seattle Public Library: Runs the Seattle Public Library's bookstore and periodic book sales, channeling proceeds back to the library system. Closely mirrors the Tompkins County model: nonprofit, donated book inventory, volunteer-driven retail operations benefiting a public library.
• The Book Thing of Baltimore: Volunteer-run nonprofit that redistributes donated books free of charge from a warehouse operation. Directly comparable in its nonprofit, volunteer-driven, donated-book warehouse model, though monetizes only through donations rather than sales.
• Better World Books: Online used book retailer with an explicit social mission (donates books and funds literacy programs worldwide). Closely comparable to the Tompkins County model in its nonprofit-adjacent mission and used book revenue model, though operated at much larger digital scale.

Emerging players

• Discover Books: Specializes in purchasing and reselling library discards, remainders, and donated books in bulk through online channels. Comparable as a downstream bulk buyer of donated book inventory, similar to how Zoom Books handles the Tompkins County residual stream.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ithacabooksale
• Facebookfacebook.com/61733126746

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Friends of the Tompkins County Public Library