Look inside book business that made ‘deeply rooted’ Houston County official a local staple

A young Macon boy who grew up working at a Sears in Macon Mall now runs a successful bookstore with four locations in Middle Georgia and 12 franchised nationally. And he’s an elected official too.

Shane Gottwals has strong ties to the community and his roots in Middle Georgia go deep. His father worked as a clerk at the Kroger on Forsyth Road in Macon for more than 30 years.

Gottwals graduated high school, worked selling electronics at Sears, and graduated from Mercer University in 2006.

He and his wife, Abbey Gottwals, knew they wanted to open a business and do it in the place that has always been home for Shane Gottwals.

“My wife and I got married in 2006; we had just finished our college careers at Mercer University,” he said. “I earned an English degree, and her degree was in business; we thought the combination of English, business, and retail was perfect for opening a bookstore.”

“Even though we had no idea what we were doing and had no friends in the book business, a bookstore just felt right,” Gottwals said.

The couple started out with the help of Gottwals’ parents, buying used books wherever they could find them in order to stock the store.

“We went into it blindly and did a poor job for the first few months, although we tried hard,” Gottwals said. “But over time, we learned the ropes and then — along with faithful staff members — became very good at what we do.”

The first Gottwals Books store opened in March 2007 in Warner Robins and was followed by the second store in Byron in 2009, Macon in 2010 and Perry in 2012.

The couple also started franchising nationwide under the Walls of Books name in 2012.

This year marks 17 years since the first store opened in Warner Robins. Gottwals said it is hard to comprehend.

“I have a hard time comprehending the passage of 17 years,” he said. “It feels like we went from clueless entrepreneurs to a stable family-owned business almost overnight.”

“Time just acts that way, I guess. Plus, my wife and I were a newly married couple when Gottwals Books started, and now we have five children who don’t know what life is like without Gottwals Books,” Gottwals said.

Gottwals said the business is going strong, but it wouldn’t be where it is today if it weren’t for his staff members, vendors and community partners who have helped run the business as well as the thousands of customers that have made Gottwals Books a local staple in Middle Georgia.

“They don’t owe us their allegiance, but the customers are the only reason we’ve stuck it out,” he said. “We are thankful.”

Gottwals said the thought of being a local staple takes his breath away. He joked it also might have something to do with the odd name.

“It took many years for me to accept the fact that we are a community staple,” he said. “‘Gottwals’ is a household name, of sorts, in Middle Georgia.”

“It’s not because I’m anything special, but probably because the name is a little weird or memorable and the name represents joy to a lot of happy shoppers,” Gottwals said. “I also try to imagine Middle Georgia without Gottwals Books. I admit that we’ve added an element of culture that’s real.”

Gottwals also owns Eventide, a new venue which acts as an offshoot of the bookstores that aims to promote art, according to Gottwals.

But being a business owner wasn’t the only way Gottwals wanted to serve his community.

Gottwals said being a Houston County commissioner now is just one more avenue for him to help make Middle Georgia a better place.

“I became a county commissioner because we are so committed to this community. To be blunt, I don’t think I would have become a commissioner unless I were a business owner first,” he said. “The business gave me a platform to showcase my family’s ideals, and it put our last name front-and-center to a lot of people.”

“When I ran for office, I’m sure many of my voters didn’t know me personally but appreciated Gottwals Books,” Gottwals said. “I’m really trying to do the same with our business and the board of commissioners, and that’s to make Middle Georgia the best place to be.”

The Gottwals are members of Central Fellowship. His five children attend Central Fellowship Christian Academy and Gottwals serves as the chairman of the school board.

Gottwals said a lot of people point to the attractions, shopping, and industry that Middle Georgia has to offer that make it a great place. He said the people make it a great place too.

“For me, I consider all the people - they are what makes this community wonderful. I come from a long line of Middle Georgia residents, and these are salt of the earth kinds of folks,” he said. “I don’t want big city politics or traffic or run-run-run attitudes.”

Gottwals said Middle Georgia “doesn’t take itself too seriously” and is a welcoming place that avoids division.

“We are deeply rooted here,” he added.

This story was originally published March 5, 2024 at 6:00 AM.