The Art of Business

Learning Curve: Mirabai Books Expands
& Contines To Grow
by Mala Hoffman

The story of how Jeff Cuiule and Audrey Cusson came to own Mirabai Books in Woodstock three years ago reads like a modern fairy tale. And, with inventory and sales doubling since then, and resounding community support, it does have a happy ending.

The pair, who have been married for 15 years, were living in Manhattan and working in the corporate world, he in advertising and she in publishing. But something wasn't quite right. "Our lives were in an upward spiral, as society defines upward, but more and more, we felt there was no real purpose to what we were doing," Cuiule recalls.

"We both really loved our jobs, but that's all we knew," Cusson adds. To top it off, they were also in the process of seeing a marriage counselor in the city. "We had drifted apart," Cuiule explains. "We were both traveling a lot and working, and rarely saw each other." At one point, the counselor, Ray Bergen, who also had a practice in Saugerties, asked the couple to describe their dream situation. As they listed the elements - own a little bookstore with some purpose in the mountains, live in an apartment upstairs, work together - Bergen's eyes lit up. "He said, 'Wait a minute, I know exactly the place you're talking about."

At that point, Mirabai Books, a spiritually-based bookstore which had been in the center of Woodstock since 1987, had been up for sale for two years. Bergen introduced his clients to the owners and things started moving very fast. "It just clicked," Cuiule says. "We bought the store a week later."

Though neither of them had ever worked in retail before ("We didn't even know how to run a cash register," Cuiule laughs), they set about expanding inventory while still maintaining what they call the "mission" of Mirabai. "We cover all spiritual traditions and really provide a spiritual vortex," Cusson notes. "People might come in for Eastern philosophy and then find themselves looking through our Native American collection or books on Sufism or Judaism. We also have a very extensive health and holistic healing section."

And, in a nod to her publishing past, which included 15 years in children's books, Cusson has also overseen the establishment of a "very sweet" children's literature section, which includes books in traditions ranging from Taoism to Christianity to address those basic philosophical questions children always seem to have, as well as what Cusson describes as "a tight set of children's fantasy books," books on animal communication and lots of books about fairies and angels. "The section addresses the spiritual development of a child," she adds. "It's small but focused."

In addition to expanding the music section, which now includes a CD listening station and features healing music, chants and world music, the couple also set up a complete, year-round workshop schedule, which they offer in the quiet of their statuary room. "We offer 70 workshops a year," Cuiule says. "We have such amazing teachers in and around this area. We are blessed with an enormous amount of wisdom keepers and blessed that they want to be a part of our store." In April, workshops will include Healing with the Angels, with Holly Bean, to be held on April 5 from 2 to 4 PM; Hands on Herbal Medicine, with Susun Weed, to be held on April 10 from 7 to 9 PM; and Drumming with the Tabla, with Pandit Divyang Vakil of the Taalim School of Indian Music, to be held on April 13 from 2 to 3:30 PM

There is also an extensive crystal and jewelry selection, flower essences and essential oils, and yoga and meditation supplies. But books remain Mirabai's main focus. "What we try to do is make all of this material accessible to the average person," Cuiule emphasizes.

"Not only accessible, but inviting," Cusson adds. "It's bright and beautiful, not dark and academic, even though we have some very esoteric texts in here that cannot be found on Amazon.com, like a channeled text from the Coptic times, which is one of our bestselling books." The book, Pistis Sophia: A Coptic Gnostic Text, is a compilation of scrolls dating from the second or third century that was originally written in the Coptic language of Egypt and was recently published in English for the first time, "so it's a big event," Cusson adds.

Cuiule and Cusson agree that the support of the community and the knowledge of their staff, who remained with them following the sale of the store, have been keys to their success. "We've had tremendous support from the people who live here locally, and that's been very, very important to us," says Cuiule. "Not only right here in Woodstock, but throughout Ulster County, Greene County, Dutchess County. People will also come from New York City and New Jersey just to come here, to Mirabai. The reason for them is not because it's impossible to find a title anywhere but here, but because the environment is unique. The comment we get most often is, there's such a good energy in this store."

"It's a sanctuary," Cusson adds.

Though they acknowledge that it's not an easy prospect to run a bookstore these days, Cuiule and Cusson are hoping to live happily ever after. They bought a house in the woods and the apartment upstairs, where they lived for three years, is now going to be rented to healing practitioners who are moving up from Manhattan. Soon they may expand into setting up guided tours, perhaps to Europe or Egypt. The store continues to grow, and may begin offering rare and antique spiritual books for sale. And one thing is definite. Following Bergen's intervention, they are no longer in counseling. "The store is our therapy," Cusson says. "His loss is our gain."

Mirabai Books is located at 23 Mill Hill Road in Woodstock and
is open from 11 AM to 7 PM every day. For more information about the store or the workshops, please call 679-2100 or go the website at www.mirabai.com.

-Mala Hoffman