Vignette Bookshop is changing the way we read

Words by Mallory Lehenbauer

Vignette Bookshop is here to find your next favorite read, but maybe in a way you weren’t expecting. Choose your edit—Armchair Philosopher, Ersatz Existentialist, Hopeful Romantic, etc., and this online bookstore based in Austin, Texas, will pick out vintage books personalized for you. Not sure of your edit? Take a quiz to discover your literary identity.

“I think what makes Vignette exciting is that it's a business that caters to readers by someone who is genuinely a reader,” cofounder and head of branding and marketing Jordan Foland said. “I think our edits speak to the true archetypes of readers.” 

Cofounders Jordan and Molly Moore have always been book lovers and avid readers. Both started their careers in marketing. Jordan stayed in the field while Molly chose to follow her passion for literature, working several years at BookPeople, an Austin bookstore. There, she “mostly just spent that time like reading my head off. I really developed my whole reading persona there, my taste.” 
Along with her love of books, she also had a passion for vintage shopping and reselling. After leaving her job at the bookstore she worked for a nonprofit and then started her own business reselling vintage items. 

“I'd always been kind of like an estate sale fanatic and vintage person. So, I just kind of moved into that full-time,” Molly explained. 

Jordan spent most of her career working in brand strategy for lifestyle, beauty, and fashion brands, along with social media marketing roles. 

Vignette Bookshop was born after a frantic phone call from Molly. 

“So, I was doing the reselling and Jordan called me one day distraught. I'll have her tell that side of the story, but [she] was kind of like, ‘I have an idea,’” Molly said. “So, we started talking about ways we could package the stuff that I was reselling.” 

Jordan said she was ready to move on from her corporate role in marketing. 

“Well, Molly, was having success doing a bit of reselling without doing any marketing,” Jordan said. “So, I called her one day because I was really frustrated at work, and I was like, ‘What if we just layer some marketing on top of what you're already doing?’”

They quickly realized that Molly’s true expertise in the vintage world was in her years at BookPeople. 

“It kind of took off from there,” Jordan said. “Then Molly came up with the archetypes that turned into the edits and I made a website.”

Jordan and Molly were able to be creative and collaborative on the website, at times having neighbors chime in on what each archetype is like and what kind of books they would read. 

“So, from there, we've just been kind of taking it step by step,” Molly said. “But I think for both of us it was just very good timing. Both of our 10 years of experience in marketing and books just aligned.” 

After launching in June of 2023, they have sold over 600 edits and have built a community of customers who love reading and discovering new—but old—books. 

“It's book thrifting for people who don't like to thrift,” Jordan said about the way Vignette is different from other booksellers. They are for those “who don’t want to have to stand in the thrift store and look up every author but also want to make sure they’re getting a good book. We don't send out books unless Molly thinks they're a good book in some way.” 

Every book is hand-selected by Molly based on the edit chosen by the reader. According to Jordan, Molly is an encyclopedia of knowledge on authors and books that have been popular over the last decade and beyond. One of Molly’s roles at BookPeople was archiving the book recommendations from staff. 

“I just became very intimately familiar with like the thousands or so staff recommendations we'd had over the years at BookPeople,” Molly explained. “And so, even if I haven’t read that book, I know that somebody I trust has read it and loved it at some point. Having that knowledge has been so helpful because I have a very specific taste, but, especially in my role, I had to really get comfortable recommending a wide swath of books.” 

Ultimately what drives this new bookshop is Molly’s love for sharing a good read. 

“I am obsessed with books,” Molly said. “I just want to give people the book that I really think they're actually gonna read.” 

Molly and Jordan curate the books for each edit in local used bookstores, library resales, and consignment shops. They love the idea of creating something that keeps books out of landfills and also resonates with people of all ages and a variety of life experiences.  

“People are connecting with the brand we're building, and we don’t have to shove it down their throats, which is just so nice,” Jordan said. 

One way that readers have connected with Vignette is through TikTok. Jordan said that she became fascinated with “BookTok,” the community of readers on TikTok that shares reviews of books. 

“I think something that BookTok and Bookstagram have done which is really interesting is tied identity to reading and what people are reading in a really interesting way. People hold up certain books and it says something about their identity,” Jordan said. “I think understanding their reading persona as an identity, has allowed people to be more open-minded to new [things].” 

Jordan said this type of “tie to identity” in books has allowed people to be more open to books they may not have heard of or are familiar with. Both agreed that readers right now, because of BookTok, are feeling more confident and curious about reading a more diverse array of books. 

“I think BookTok, reading ARCS (Advanced Reader Copies), and kind of being more open to the publishing world—like smaller authors and debut authors—have given people much more confidence that they can open a book that maybe they haven't heard of, or that maybe doesn't have some clout behind it, and really love it,” Molly said. “It's definitely diversified authorship in general of what people read and feel actually connected to.” 

The goal of Vignette Bookshop is to send readers books that they maybe wouldn't otherwise read, but will love for a long time. 

You can take the quiz or curate your own edit of vintage books at vignettebooks.com.