By Rinn Lee

The sisters of Wild Sisters Book Co. are wild — at least when it comes to impulsively opening a bookstore.

Sisters Claire Bone and Noelle Baganz were inspired to open the store after seeing a TikTok video in January 2021.

“I saw a TikTok of two sisters opening a bookstore and I was like, ‘That would be fun.’ I love reading. I love books. And my sister whipped her head around and was like, ‘I have a business plan.’ And I was like, ‘Oh my God,’” Baganz said.

Just for fun, and in an attempt to stave off the boredom of sitting at home during COVID, they went to check out a location in Sacramento’s Tahoe Park.

Despite some initial hesitation, by June 2021 they had a storefront and over 1,000 followers on Instagram. 

Relying solely on used books the first few months, the sisters received donations from their followers, family and friends, in addition to scouring library sales. They ordered their first shipment of new books in October 2021, but mostly remained focused on selling used books.

Bone said most of the books were gifted. “During the pandemic, everybody [was] reading like crazy, and cleaning their houses,” Bone said, which led her to put a call out on Instagram for book donations. “We got a lot of crazy stuff, but people would just start leaving boxes of books on our porch. I scoured library sales, I scoured Facebook. I would pick up books.”

Decorating their newly acquired bookstore was a family effort, as Bone’s husband and three children, then aged 13, 16 and 19, were recruited to help. They gathered an eclectic collection of vintage art, Facebook Marketplace tables and chairs and bookshelves from Avid Reader in Davis and Crawford’s Books in Sacramento to bring a homey, comforting aura to the little shop. 

The chosen theme of imperfection and miscellany gives Wild Sisters a timeless feel. A guest could walk in and never guess the store had only just opened, exactly as the sisters intended. 

“It is part of the brand to feel like we’ve been here forever,” Baganz said. “When we came into this space, the landlord was fully prepared to remodel his space and put a ceiling up and I told him no. I liked the exposed ceiling.” 

The first big change for the bookstore came about a year-and-a-half into business when Baganz decided to go back to graduate school to study social work once COVID restrictions eased up. At that point, Bone became the sole owner of Wild Sister’s Book Co. 

“I definitely learned a lot,” Baganz said. “Running a business is no easy thing whatsoever. Just being knee deep into it, kudos to my sister for doing it now by herself, because with two of us it wasn’t easy. But it is a lot of fun, and it’s really rewarding because the community part is probably the best part.”

With the change in ownership came a change in location, and the bookstore moved to its current home on Folsom Boulevard in East Sacramento in November 2023. 

The move allowed business to expand, and the bookstore was able to stock more inventory, hold larger events and shift to selling newer books. 

Wild Sisters’ biggest focus is on building a community, and that didn’t change upon moving locations. The new space allows the business to host a larger number of people for events, book clubs and author talks which all help them expand their reach and be a space for people to gather and connect, according to Bone.

“I’ve met a lot of really cool people through the bookstore,” Baganz said, adding that she met one of her best friends through the business. “I found a community in Sacramento through the bookstore as [a] previous owner, and then as an employee and someone who still comes around. I still continue to meet a lot of people.” 

One recurring event hosted by Wild Sisters is a children’s storytime held every Monday morning and is free and open to anyone who wishes to attend. 

“We’re starting to get a really nice group of kids that come every week. There’s no obligation to buy anything,” Bone said. “Just a place to be.”

In addition to building a community from outside the bookstore, every employee welcomed into the fold becomes an important part of the bookstore. The first non-family member was hired almost a year and a half into the venture. Bone said most of her employees now are her daughter’s friends or other kids in the community. 

“It is very much a family affair,” she said. “It’s people we really trust and we know that they’re gonna get along and fit into the culture.”

Bones’s youngest daughter, Charlotte Bone, has worked at Wild Sisters Book Co. since it first opened when she was 12. Charlotte said helping out at the family business has helped her be more confident, especially around adults.

“Having a job at such a young age has made me be able to talk to adults in ways that my friends can’t,” Charlotte said. “I’m super comfortable with random strangers. I like having the experience at such a young age. That’s really awesome.”

Being part of Sacramento’s independently owned bookstore community has also been a boon for Wild Sisters. They share an inventory system with the East Village Bookshop, so if Wild Sisters doesn’t have a particular book in store, they can direct customers to their fellow bookstore just a short four-minute drive away. 

“Other bookstores helped us,” Bone said, recalling stores like Crawford’s who helped get Wild Sisters outfitted. “I’m getting a bunch of bookshelves from Avid Reader in Davis. So it’s even got a piece of other stores here. It’s like a community bookstore.”

This story was written and photographed by Rinn Lee, a student at Sacramento State.

This story is part of the Solving Sacramento journalism collaborative. Our partners include California Groundbreakers, Capital Public Radio, Outword, Russian America Media, Sacramento Business Journal, Sacramento News & Review, Sacramento Observer and Univision 19. Support stories like these here, and sign up for our monthly newsletter.