Plenty Downtown Bookshop Grateful Recipient of Chamber's Small Business of the Year

Plenty Downtown Bookshop was named "Small Business of the Year" by the Chamber of Commerce in Cookeville, TN last week in the presence of 500 business leaders gathered for the Chamber's Annual Meeting.

"We were shocked and so thrilled," said Executive Director Lisa Uhrik, accepting the award on behalf of Plenty. "The Small Business of the Year Award from the Chamber of Commerce has always been a silent dream for me---to be involved with something seen as valuable to our community. And this is especially nice because it recognizes the work of so many people." 

"Plenty is the book-culture building work involving tremendous staff professionals, who so many know and love," said co-founder Dave Uhrik. "And it is fed and led by a lot of people who find space to lead things--from poetry to music to workshops."

Co-founder and Bookshop Manager Ashley Michael adds, "The reach of this little bookshop blows me away. Because we're also a nonprofit, we've been able to more easily gift books to places in our community that desperately need them, and form partnerships with so many incredible nonprofits who are also doing great work here. The work we do is the collaborative efforts of many, and we’re really thankful to be a part of it.” 

Along with donations, Plenty Bookshop has also offered more than 1,000 free micro events for the community since the fall of 2022, reports Ashley Michael. These events bring people together and out of their homes in the best ways, helpful to create a more enriched and healthy community through a simple bookshop.

"Our hope is to impact reading habits---which are at an all time low for adults and continue to decline with our kids---and to help our community come together and know and appreciate each other." says Lisa Uhrik. Ashley Michael adds, "The heart of this bookshop has always centered around loving our neighbor, and being a community space and a source of encouragement and aid for those neighbors. We do it through books, and we love every minute of it!”"

"Our community creates Plenty--and I mean that they contribute not only by purchasing there, but that our community actively has ideas and leads them, brings things for use in the bookshop, and facilitates a wide array of work in the schools and non profit works in our community." says Lisa Uhrik. 

Plenty is supported by a Board of Community Advisors and Advocates that include: 

Amy New, Avery Hutchins, Alejandra Cisneros, Andrea Burckhard, Angie Wells, Angie Griffin, Ali Olsen, Darlene Goff, Mark Hutchins, Tabitha Merritt, Jessica Yepifantsev, Raniece Can, Tony Michael, Tony Michael, Kathryn Wisinger, Lisa Lovell, Angela Knight, Lanny Knight, Sharon Cochrane, Katherine Hermann-Turner, Josh Wilkerson, and Kelsey Wilkerson. 

Plenty's professional book and staff include Lettie Collier, Kathryn Eastburn, Eliza Eldridge, Marissa Fike, Riley Forssell, Tracey Hackett, Sara Kruszka, Jaime Linder, Rachel Moore, Corbin Norris, Emy Norris, Ali Olsen, Reid Owens, Ginger Reinohel, Stacy Sharp, Sammantha Steele, Kenna Sullivan, and Serena Walker. 

Lisa, Ashley and Dave also wish to credit and thank the community of downtown businesses that are all interrelated and support progress for the community overall, as well. 

You can follow Plenty's podcast, Life of Plenty, on Podbean or wherever you listen to pods, learn about upcoming events, and shop with Plenty for books and audio books.