What does it actually take to open a brick-and-mortar store in a small town — as a young first-time business owner, competing against Amazon and Indigo, in a market you had to validate yourself? 📚 Jacqueline Puesta, owner of Wildwood Bookstore & Market, did exactly that. She started with a mobile bookshop, tested the market at Milton events, pitched her dream to a landlord with a full business and design plan, and opened Milton’s first independent bookstore in a decade — all in six weeks.
In this episode, Ariel sits down with Jackie to unpack the real story behind Wildwood: the market research, the landlord pitch, the community-first approach, and what makes an independent bookstore worth choosing over the big guys.
✅ How Jackie validated demand before signing a lease
✅ Pitching a startup to a landlord — what she brought to the table
✅ Why curation and personal connection beat algorithms every time
✅ Opening in November and surviving the slowest retail months
✅ Building a downtown community through a business passport crawl
✅ What’s next for Wildwood — authors, events, and a bigger footprint
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0:00 – Intro
1:18 – Meet Jacqueline Puesta & Wildwood Bookstore
2:30 – Why the mobile bookstore came first
6:37 – Choosing Milton: small-town vibes and a real market need
7:32 – 10 years in retail — the customer experience that led to books
9:17 – Film school, marketing instincts, and testing the concept
10:41 – Finding commercial space and dealing with the landlord directly
11:18 – Pitching a startup: business plan, design plan, and selling the dream
13:21 – Six weeks to open: the buildup and the community response
15:19 – Wildwood vs. Indigo vs. Amazon: the honest comparison
17:36 – Curated picks vs. algorithms — the independent bookstore advantage
18:54 – The business passport crawl and downtown community building
21:12 – Surviving the slow months: winter, the farmer’s market, and what’s next
23:25 – Future plans: author events, third-space ambitions, partnerships
24:51 – Where to find Wildwood
26:06 – Outro
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🌿 Visit Wildwood Bookstore & Market
📍 207 Main Street East, Milton — right beside Ivy Arms
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In 2011, Ariel Kormendy and Adrian Trott formed The Kormendy Trott Team, now often referred to as KT (thanks to our logo!). The foundation of KT is built on providing unmatched value and attention to detail in everything we do. From our ever-expanding, comprehensive list of exclusive services to our expertly trained team, you will receive the highest level of care throughout your entire real estate journey.
Originally a team of two in Milton, Ontario, the KT Team has grown into a large team of exceptional REALTORS®, a client-care department, and now includes KT Media, KT Commercial, and our sister company, Renti, allowing us to provide our clients with a complete lineup of genuine, professional, and proven services across Halton Region, Peel Region and the surrounding Regions within the Greater Toronto Area.
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