We had the good fortune of connecting with John Evans and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi John, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
The four things that I think have made our brand successful are :

1. My wife and partner Alison Reid, who has a good head for business and is a great bookseller
2. Our philosophy for the store, its inclusiveness, helpfulness, professionalism, and standards of excellence
3. Our staff, who are well-trained and who carry their passion about books to the customers.
4. Customers who value what we do and how we do it.

We’ve been lucky in these ways.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Diesel, Alison and I are all about getting the best book into each reader’s hand that we can. The best book is different for every person, at any time. So, figuring that out and keeping the reading excitement going is a joy, a pleasure and a privilege.

Cultural, societal and economic trends and forces tend to go against the existence of bookstores, but individual readers still know what can be found there — themselves and others; travelling through the the history of human experience from your armchair; conversing in the one of the last civil, public spaces where opinions, feelings, and thoughts are welcomed.

Things I’ve learned is that Alison loves to design and open bookstores, while I want every neighborhood to have a high-quality bookstore. This makes opening bookstores a perpetual temptation. And I’ve learned it is time to scale back after 40+ years of independent bookselling.

That is why we have put the San Diego store up for sale. So that the wonderful bookstore we created can continue to serve North San Diego the way it was intended, and the way the place deserves.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Beaches would be high on the list, from San Onofre to Imperial Beach. For food, probably Fish 101, Buona Forchetta, Tony’s Jacal and Prager Brothers’ bread and pastries. Likely other bookstores like Catapult, D.G. Wills, Verbatim and maybe a record store or two: Lou’s Records, or Folk Arts Rare Records. Definitely go to the Belly Up! The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego in La Jolla and Balboa Park. For a movie, either La Paloma in Encinitas or Angelika Film Center in Carmel Mountain. Also a trip to downtown Oceanside, for a walk on the pier and a drink at the High/Low. UCSD campus and USD campus are worth a visit along with La Jolla Cove. So many beautiful and interesting places!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
A shoutout should go to Matt Wyse who owned Pellucidar, Pendragon and Pegasus Books, where we cut our teeth on independent bookselling. He was generous with his business understanding and with his training. He had created good systems for running 3 new & used bookstores in Berkeley and Oakland, and a remainder distribution company as well.

Website: www.dieselbookstore.com

Instagram: @dieseldelmar

Facebook: @dieseldelmar

Youtube: @dieselbookstore

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