Audible’s New In-Person Bookstore Turns Browsing into a Listening Experience

This month, New York City dwellers searching for their next audiobook can browse options in person. Audible has created a listening lounge and community hub in Lower Manhattan, which it calls a “bookless bookstore.” Instead of housing paperbacks and hardcovers, the three-floor store is full of tiles used for sampling books, including 1984, Frankenstein, Heated Rivalry and The Fourth Wing.

CNET attended a press preview of Audible’s Story House, which is now open to the public. Visitors can pick a tile representing an audiobook from a shelf and bring it to a station to listen to snippets solo with headphones or with others in booths.

The curated samples offer about 5 minutes of listening, and you can keep swapping for new tiles. We spotted Lena Dunham’s new memoir Famesick and the recently adapted Wuthering Heights among the more than 300 audio stories to choose from. 

Audible’s Story House has six unique spaces, including an upstairs listening bar. You can tap a human “Story Tender” who is passionate about audiobooks to help you get set up.

Downstairs, the Dolby Atmos Lounge offers immersive listening in a dark, shoe-free room. Audible Story House also includes a cafe and space highlighting a feature in Audible’s app that lets you read and listen to a book at the same time.

“For me, what was really important was to have a real community space where people can connect and share things that they love,” James Finn, Audible’s senior vice president of brand and content marketing, told CNET during the preview. “We’re going to have panels, we’re going to have lots of different fan-centric days.”

While some of Audible Story House’s upcoming events and programming already have waitlists, Finn told CNET that visitors could still find activities to participate in. If you’re interested in the unconventional bookstore, you can check it out Wednesday through Sunday throughout May from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 260 Bowery.