Bluffton couple brings independent bookstore to Old Town

After nearly two years of planning and renovating a local home into a business, Allyn and Jamie Oliver have opened The Bluffton Bookshop in Old Town Bluffton, bringing a locally owned independent bookstore to the community.

Located at 89 Bridge St. (next to the Bluffton Oyster Company), the bookstore occupies an approximately 80-year-old home with separate rooms for different genres, a children’s area and outdoor seating. Outside, The Frozen Fiddler serves frozen treats and cold beverages from a walk-up window.

Allyn Oliver and her family relocated to Bluffton from Charlotte, North Carolina, though she grew up in South Carolina and had been visiting the area for years. She said she quickly realized the town was missing something.

“I told my husband years ago if we moved there and there’s not a bookstore, then we’ll have to build one,” Oliver said.

Before moving forward, Oliver spent about a year talking with residents about the idea and later enrolled in a three-day bookstore training course in Jacksonville, Florida. After deciding to pursue the business, she searched for a location in Old Town before purchasing the Bridge Street property. The project required about 18 months of permitting and renovation before the doors could open.

Today, the bookstore carries titles covering fiction, nonfiction, children’s books, cookbooks, travel, history and Lowcountry-interest books. Oliver said assembling the opening inventory required months of research to create a collection that reflected local readers’ interests while also offering popular new releases and bestselling authors.

“There are 6,000 books in here, so it just takes a long time to curate it,” she said.

In addition to books, the store offers puzzles, games, stationery, greeting cards and gifts for readers. Customers can also special order books that are not in stock, with most orders arriving within a couple of days, Oliver said.

One room is dedicated entirely to children’s books, complete with a reading nook and a hidden miniature house built into one wall. During renovations, their contractor discovered a foundation block inscribed “Emmett 1946.” Rather than cover it, the builders incorporated it into the display, creating one of the shop’s most talked-about features.

“We just wanted a place for the community to gather together, to meet other readers and find our people.” she said.

She said that vision has already begun to take shape as customers strike up conversations, exchange recommendations and discover new authors while browsing.
“It’s fun hearing the strangers, people who don’t know each other, talking about books too and giving recommendations,” she said.

The Bluffton Bookshop plans to host author signings, book clubs, children’s story times, workshops, mahjong gatherings and collaborations with local artists and small businesses. A large-scale mural by Bluffton artist Amiri Farris, commissioned with partial funding from a Town of Bluffton grant, was unveiled during the grand opening celebration.