18. The Strand can design your dream library through “Books by the Foot”

While the bulk of the Strand’s merchandise is selling books, the store also designs custom book collections and rentals for interior decorators, set designers, commercial spaces, and even personal libraries. They’ll work with you to create your dream library, finding everything you need in their 18 miles of books, whether it’s leather bound books or nostalgic childhood reads.

Books by the Foot has three collection options. The first, instant collections, is for people who want to instantly order books in bulk for their personal libraries, allowing you to buy everything from a Markdown paperback collection for $15/ft to an antique leather foreign language collection for $300/ft.

The second, Custom Curation collection, involves expert staff who consult with customers to create their ideal personal libraries, whether you need it for your home, business, or the set of a movie. The staff can travel to and install your collection where you need it for $200/hour per installer.

The third option, rentals, is geared towards creating custom rental libraries to enhance everything from a photo shoot to wedding.

A cool part of the Books by the Foot service is that you can also purchase “books by color,” if, for whatever reason, you need books of a certain hue.