Welcome to Binding Agents
Hi! Thanks for being here. I’m Catie. I’m a passable, enthusiastic home cook and even more enthusiastic eater with piles of books on every surface of my South Philadelphia home, where I live with my husband, my daughter and my cat. My career to date spans hospitality, retail, event production, the arts, PR/communications and a brief but memorable summer counting money at a Jersey Shore bar.
Right now, I’m using every skill in my arsenal to put together a cozy, kooky, connective and inspirational bookshop for cooks and eaters in Philadelphia. At Binding Agents, you can expect to find new cookbooks and books of other genres centering food (like culinary memoir, the tastiest fiction and delicious books for kids), plus gifts and goods for making, serving and enjoying. And you can count on plenty of events and programs to connect you with cooks, authors and the likeminded people who are and love both, including a regular cookbook club.
If you’ve made it this far, I bet this is something you’d love to see in Philly. And I hope you’ll help me with the final ingredients for Binding Agents so I can bring the permanent, all-day dinner party of our collective dreams to the Italian Market this fall.
![]()
Why are we* crowdfunding? And why should you support us?
Yes, we need stuff (more on that next) and money is—have you heard?— pretty expensive and tough to get. With your support, we’ll redirect that energy toward more great things and experiences for the shop.
Most importantly, your contribution to this campaign is a lot like pre-ordering a book. You're a reader, so you get this: It tells the powers that be—publishers, authors, future partners, banks, etc.—that you want a store like Binding Agents to exist in Philadelphia and you plan to support it. That makes them more likely to bet on us, too, and will enable us to bring you awesome shit.
- *In that vein, a note on switching between "I" and "we." This is technically a one-woman show. I am, for now, the sole employee of Binding Agents. But this business already reflects the generous support and ideas of many people, and soon will reflect yours, too. It is more than the sum of its parts.
What do we need? Books!
This little cook/book shop has come a long way, from fever dream to so-close-I-can-taste-it reality. Here’s some of what we’ve accomplished already, with our own resources and the expertise of friends and strangers:
- Found our home at 9th and Christian and invested heavily in renovations to modernize the space while retaining its character; we own the building and plan to be here for the long haul;
- Become a totally legitimate business in the eyes of the state, woohoo! (This should be, like, so many bullet points, but I’m trying to keep things zippy);
- Developed and deployed a (SUPERB) brand identity by Sara DeViva;
- Joined the national and regional bookseller associations to support fellow indies, understand the industry and upskill fast;
- Initiated some outstanding partnerships I can’t wait to tell you about soon.
What’s missing from that list? Well, a lot (mostly boring). But chiefly: BOOKS. AND STUFF. Inventory is the biggest investment for any new bookstore—and while there are lots of great things about being new (shiny!), the lack of credit history is not one of them. All our first orders to stock the store will need to be paid for up front.
To calculate the cost of filling our gorgeous little box, we’re using $75/square foot, which is on the higher end of the industry standard range. This reflects the higher price of premium hardcover cookbooks and special, artisan gifties—as well as the intention to thoughtfully curate our small space.
The remainder of the budget would help cover costs to get our point-of-sale and inventory management systems running and humming for the first year, and operational costs (including fees) to field the campaign.
The way this campaign works, we’ll receive any funds pledged, even if we don’t meet our goal. If we come up short, those dollars will go toward all the same things—just less of them. If we exceed the goal (dare to dream!!), that will go toward more fixtures and furnishings, professional fees (like accounting and bookkeeping support), insurance, utilities (gotta keep the lights on!), marketing and promotion. Again, those things free up this one-woman show to make cool stuff happen for you a little more and do spreadsheets a little less. Not that I'm not stoked on the spreadsheets.
What do you get? Perks!
I’ve put together a menu (lol) of perks we hope you’ll love. Rep the merch, stock your shelves with recs or let me meal plan for ya! I promise we’ll have fun.
Transparently, my sense is that if you’re here, you’re mostly psyched to help a small biz you’d like to shop at get off the ground. The items are priced like a pledge drive accordingly.
I'll roll out more perks as we go! Have an idea for a new one? Give me a shout at hello@bindingagentsphilly.com.
Why does Philly need a cookbook shop?
Philadelphia is a vibrantly delicious city with a gifted, scrappy food-focused community: top-tier chefs, self-taught bakers, avid home cooks and voracious eaters. It is my hope—and would be my honor—to create a new space where all these people can gather, read, eat, learn and be inspired. We deserve this.
And the people who make cookbooks (at all stages) deserve it, too, especially the ones who live and work here. To cook for someone is an act of love. To develop one recipe and share it is an act of generosity. To develop dozens of recipes connected by a coherent thesis, shepherd them through a logistical gauntlet (testing, cross-testing, storytelling, photography, design) to become a cohesive object, see that object printed, bound and distributed, and then follow that object around in the real world getting it into people’s hands? So that they may understand you and yours better, or find weeknights easier, or imbibe more thoughtfully, or commemorate the big moments more deliciously? That is an act of admirable madness, a profound impulse to nourish, an arguably unhinged commitment to craft. We're going to celebrate that at Binding Agents.
Also, I loved my mom so much. She loved to cook and, more importantly, welcome everyone to her table. She’s not here anymore, but the table still is. And I want it to be full, loud, weird and wonderful.
Risks & Challenges
Retail’s tough, man. It’s hard out there. But I think we can do it.
-
The e-commerce elephant: The twin lures of direct-to-your-door convenience and rock-bottom prices are powerful—they test indie bookstores and other small businesses every day. But Binding Agents is, by design, about as small and niche as it gets. I truly believe we will offer something rooted in the physical world that is special and valuable. You can prove me right by supporting this campaign today and shopping small in the future! Those other guys are busy lighting our money on fire to go to space, I'll be right here making cool stuff in South Philly for you.
-
The shop is physically small: This is a limiting factor, both for events and inventory, but it was calculated. The location doesn't get any better, and it'll keep the shop manageable for me to run independently for quite some time while we grow. I'm hard at work on partnerships and ideas that will allow Binding Agents to be expansive and welcoming beyond our walls. Lots to be excited about!
-
I'm a first-time business owner: I don't know what I don't know, and boy do I look forward to discovering. But I'm a tortured millennial who was raised to avoid being bad at stuff, and I wouldn't be here if I didn't think I had the skills to do it right. Trust on the memory of my mother and my respect for Philly that I'm taking this seriously, educating myself every day and consulting people smarter and more experienced than I am often.
Ok, that's it. I'm done. Class dismissed.
