A teal truck that, at first glance, looks like it could be a vintage ice cream truck is selling so much more than dessert. Salty Girl Books is a proud women-owned mobile bookstore and boutique, curated with hand-selected thrillers, romances and every “it” book flying off the shelves, coming to a convenient beach location near you!
Friends and co-owners Angie Parker and Billie Hrupsa worked together in retail for 19 years and always shared a love of books. So last year, these bookworms turned their passion for books into a business, making a mobile bookstore a reality.
During their first successful summer, customer Sam Douglass, a professional videographer and cinematic content creator, posted a video about Salty Girl Books to her BookTok account that went viral, racking up thousands of views and shares overnight.
It was then that Billie and Angie brought Sam into the business as social media manager.
“I was so excited to come on board. I love this concept, and I really believe in it,” Sam said with a smile.
Angie explained how natural it was to add Sam to the mix and how much the business needed her.
“We went from 1,500 followers to almost 40,000 in less than a year!”
There are now two coastal-inspired, bougie book trucks: one serving the Delaware beaches, run by Billie, and one designated for Maryland locations, run by Angie. These mobile shops feature bookish accessories, Salty Girl merchandise, bookmarks, bags and every great read you can find.
“We restock both trucks each week, so we always have a great variety,” Angie said.
“Right now, we’re a fun part-time gig, but we’d love to eventually be out and open daily,” Billie added.
So keep your eyes peeled this summer, because they’ll be popping up in front of coffee shops, shopping centers, community events, private events and collaborations near you. (If you have a parking lot they could pop up in, give them a call!)
“In the next two weeks, we’re going to be on the Forgotten Mile between Dewey Beach and Rehoboth Beach, and we have high hopes to be there more often,” Billie teased.
The official schedule for the week is posted every Sunday on their social media accounts, pinned to the top, and you can also visit their website to book the truck, join their book clubs or shop online: saltygirlbooks.com
While both trucks carry books for adults and young adults, the Delaware truck exclusively stocks young reader chapter books and children’s books. So bring the whole family out to shop and support these local women, who are helping foster a love of reading one book, and one location, at a time.
Crush Questions:
Angie Parker • Billie Hrupsa • Sam Douglass
Favorite Beach Activity:
Angie: Reading a good book, of course!
Billie: Floating in the water and reading.
Sam: Hmm, I’m super competitive at Spikeball.
Recommendation for a Beach Read
Angie: “The Perfect Storm” by Carley Fortune.
Billie: “Atmosphere” by Taylor Jenkins Reid.
Sam: “Local Woman Missing” by Mary Kubica.
Currently Crushing On
Angie: Frozen coffee and a beach read!
Billie: Being home! I’ve been traveling too much, so I’m crushing on relaxing.
Sam: I’m a former romance hater. (I love thrillers.) But I’m crushing on the Off-Campus series.
It’s sooo good!
