This secret Tucson bookstore is worth traveling for

Ahh, New Year’s Eve. A time to toast auld acquaintances … sing a song at midnight … and then head to the airport for a long flight home.

The airline industry estimates that 39 million Americans will be flying this holiday season.

If some of them have been staying with you, we offer this public service:

Have them visit Ink by Hudson, one of Tucson’s very best bookstores … and certainly the least well-known.

Located in Terminal B at Tucson International Airport, Ink is hardly on the beaten path. But regular travelers on Alaska, American and Delta airlines are happy to sing its praises.

Tom Tronsdal, for one. He calls Ink the “Best-kept secret in Tucson.”

Dr. Jaiva Larsen of the University of Arizona’s College of Medicine agrees. “I love this place. I fly a lot, I read a lot and I come here every chance I can. I’m definitely a regular.”

Readers aren’t the only ones to stop by. Author Jeff Biggers was in the store last week. Seeing copies of his own new book, “In Sardinia,” he signed them all.

Ink is operated by Hudson, the king of airport retail in the United States. Hudson operates some 950 stores in 90 American airports and train stations.

Longtime Tucsonan Penny Mace, who manages the six Hudson shops at TIA, has a special place in her heart for the one in Terminal B.

“I’ve been in retail sales my whole career,” she said. “I used to spend a lot of time on the road, and I always took a book. For an avid reader, being able to walk into a bookstore every day is pretty special.”

Ink should not be confused with the usual airport convenience store, where passengers might grab a water, a newspaper and a souvenir for little Willy back home.

This is a full-on bookshop, with one of the largest new-book collections in Tucson.

“It’s not just the number of books we have, it’s the range,” Mace said. “No matter what kind of books you read, no matter how old you are, we have at least a shelf or two you’ll be interested it. And if you have questions? Just ask, because the people who work here are book people.”

Hudson provides and prioritizes most of the books in the collection, borrowing heavily from its own bestseller list. But Mace and store supervisor Gil Sanchez have a budget for books of local and regional interest.

Linda Ronstadt’s memoir of her time in Tucson, “Feels Like Home,” was a popular choice last spring.

During the last Hudson sales period, three of the store’s five top sellers were children’s books by local authors and illustrators.

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“Children’s books are big for us, especially the ones by local authors,” Mace said. “Susan Lowell books like ‘The 3 Little Javelinas’ are always in our top 20. They’re perfect gifts for your kids and grandkids when you get back home.”

Airport bookshops have been in Hudson’s lineup for some time now, long enough that some customers refer to the company as “Hudson Books.”

The company’s roots are actually in newspapers, specifically the Hudson County News in Bayonne, New Jersey. In the 1980s, the paper took over bankrupt newsstands at Newark and LaGuardia airports. The stores were called Hudson News, and Hudson’s reach has been growing ever since.

Hudson now operates 60 bookstores nationwide, several on behalf of independent booksellers such as Warwick’s, Book Soup, Elliott Bay and Vroman’s.

Not surprisingly, sales strategies at Ink are different than other Tucson bookshops. Ink doesn’t advertise or promote itself to the general public, for example. Its target audience is small, limited to travelers using a single concourse at the airport. Ink relies on “curb appeal” and front-door displays to attract passersby.

Ink is different than other airport bookstores, too. Its inventory spotlights books about life in the Southwest and along the border.

And while business is booming this week at other American airports, particularly the hubs, the peak sales season for retailers at TIA is not until Spring.

“The airport is busy, but most of the travelers are people we see during the holidays live here in Tucson,” Mace explained. “We have lots of local regulars. We see them a lot. But it’s our out-of-town people who have time to browse while waiting for their flights … and want to take things home to remember their stay.”

In other words, Hudson’s accountants in Tucson will save their Season’s Greetings until the tourist season begins in February.

“We’re stocking up for Spring, when people start coming for vacations, conferences and big events like the gem show, rodeo and book festival,” Mace said. “When it’s time for them to head home, they’ll want to take keepsakes for themselves and gifts for their kids.”

Spring may be king for the accounting department, but for readers, Ink is the best-kept secret in Tucson all year ’round.

FOOTNOTES

The Tucson Festival of Books has a new executive director. Welz Kauffman, formerly the president and CEO of the Ravinia Music Festival in Highland Park, Illinois, will join the festival Jan. 15. He will replace Melanie Morgan, who resigned in September.

Is Mother Nature a book reader, too? A weather delay last week brought several new customers to the Ink store at TIA. One of them was Robert Torgerson of Zeeland, Michigan. “We’re delayed two hours because of the weather back East,” he said. “We could spend it here or in the bar, and this seemed a way better idea.”

“Fourth Wing“ by Rebecca Yarros was selected as Hudson’s “Book of the Year” for 2023. To see its complete best-of list, visit hudsonbooksellers.com/best-books-2023.