Bookstore on Wheels Joins Brownsburg Farmers Market
Crystal Custer and Jeff Wilkinson pose in their trailer, the Red Rooster Book Barn, at the Brownsburg Farmers Market.
Crystal Custer and Jeff WIlkinson spent 22 years separated before they found each other again. When they reunited via Facebook, the two decided to start a life together. Part of that involved starting their own bookselling business together, one of Custer’s big dreams in life.
Custer and Wilkinson bring a bookstore on wheels to the Brownsburg Farmers Market. The Red Rooster Book Barn combines a cozy, country aesthetic with some of the most popular authors in the country. From fantasy series like A Court of Thorns and Roses and Fourth Wing, to colorful children's books, the trailer has something for everyone.
“My husband’s nickname in high school was rooster. I love chickens, and I grew up on a farm, so it all kind of ties together,” said Custer about the bookstore’s name.
Custer and Wilkinson dated in high school, and lived together shortly in college before they went their separate ways. Both married other people, got divorced, and reunited on Facebook decades later. They travelled back and forth from Indiana and Colorado to see each other.
Since she was a child, Custer has loved books. When she moved to Brownsburg, she immediately noticed there was a lack of bookstores nearby. When she decided she wanted to create her own, Wilkinson was quick to help her make that dream a reality. He comes up with ideas for the trailer, like the checkered floors, and she picks out the books.
“Books are my passion and I love everything about books. I wanted to find a way to be able to share that,” said Custer.
Her favorite part about selling in the market is talking about books with everybody. She said it makes her business seem light and something she really enjoys. Her favorite part is helping kids find books in the children's section of the trailer.
“We do it together. It was her dream. We’re tracing her dream. We’re gonna make it as rich as possible,” said Wilkinson.
You can check out the Red Rooster book trailer at the Brownsburg Farmers Market on Thursdays from 4-7 p.m.