FAQs

We are an independent, Black- and woman-owned design consultancy, letterpress workshop, and bookstore serving designers and other thinking persons in community. We use joy (and love) as an act of resistance. We are the only full service—both in-person and fully online—majority Black-owned bookstore, in the Mountain Time Zone. We have titles from all over the world that illuminate the works of Black, brown, indigenous, and queer intellectuals that are not diminished by the presence of works by the Far Right. You can come to us for acknowledgment, love, conversations, tools, and books to transform minds and hearts.

MATTER Ltd., including the Design Consultancy, Manufactory, Community Printshop, and The Shop at MATTER, is owned by partners-in-all-things, Rick Griffith (majority owner) and Debra Johnson. Rick is a British West Indian immigrant, born in London. His parents are from British Guyana and Trinidad & Tobago. Debra was born in Omaha. Her ancestry is primarily British and Czech. They are both cisgender in a community of multi-gender queer humans, who use their creativity to fight for the rights of all. Both widows, Rick and Debra are keenly connected to the circle of life and know that the primary healing force in all things is love. Rick is Black and Debra is white.

In January 2024, we shifted The Shop at MATTER four doors down from the original location, to 2114 Market St. We now have a community venue to host events, including book signings. 2114 Market St. is accessible. The design studio and community printshop remain at 2134 Market St. We are in the Ballpark neighborhood of Denver.

We are on the ancestral land of the Arapaho, the Cheyenne, the Ute, and the Sioux.

We are open every day 11 am – 6 pm, and on Thursdays we stay open late (8 pm).

Everything in The Shop at MATTER is there for a reason. Each book and product was made or chosen with intention. You might not find every book, but you will find the book that means the most to you or to someone else. We make room on our shelves for books by Black, Queer, Indigenous, and LatinX authors whose work needs to be supported. For mainstream titles use our portal at bookshop.org. They are incredibly supportive of indie bookstores and are good people doing good work.

Absolutely. They can be purchased in person at the Shop or online. We offer physical gift cards and e-cards. Our physical gift cards are only for in-store shopping.

Out of Stock is different from On Order. Backordered or On Order are more temporary, as a result of a sudden run on a book title, for example. Out of Stock means that we may not be able to get more, and there will be no button to click to add it to the cart. If you don’t see something you are looking for check our bookshop portal, or please send your request here. Some items can be ordered and in your hands with a bit of patience. If your Backordered or Out of Stock order is ultimately unavailable from our suppliers, we’ll refund your credit card.

As an alternative, try our affiliate page on Bookshop.org. If you buy books by searching from our page (bookshop.org/shop/shopatmatter) those sales are credited to our shop, and it’s significant to our bottom line.

Yes! We love special orders, as long as your title aligns with the values of our product offerings (ie, we wouldn’t special order a book on how to improve your tennis serve). Timing for having books-in-hand is based on availability from the publisher. Submit your request here. As an alternative, you can also place your special orders through our affiliate page on Bookshop.org. If you buy books by searching from our page (bookshop.org/shop/shopatmatter) those sales are credited to our shop, and it’s significant to our bottom line.

Yes! If you’re interested in selling our stationery line, Matterial, in your place of business, give us a call or email us here. Only products we make (Matterial, prints, Solidtype, etc.) are available for wholesale. Books are not available for wholesale.

Plan on your order being ready in 1-3 weekdays if your order does not have any backorders (your invoice will say “backordered” next to the product if it is on backorder). We ship orders when all products are in stock, not in multiple packages. It is possible to divide shipments. If you’d like us to divide your order, give us a call or email us here.

Yep. We LOVE local pick-up. It’s the fastest way to get your order (typically same day) and it’s free! Just choose “local pick up” as your shipping option at the end of your purchase. We’ll let you know when your order is complete via email so you can pick it up at the Shop at 2114 Market St.

Your local pick-up order is lovingly held for up to 3 months. Beyond that, your purchase will be ceremoniously buried in a time capsule and launched into outer space for future discovery. If you have extenuating circumstances, please call or email so we can help you get your order into your hands.

Yes. It is important for us to continue to offer International shipping even though it has become less reliable and more expensive. All international packages will be shipped via DHL or UPS (Standard, Worldwide Express, and Worldwide Saver). Due to the number of our USPS International packages that never made it to their destinations, we have stopped using this service.

Effective July 1, 2021, UK and EU member states started collecting value-added tax (VAT) for ALL goods entering the UK and EU. The VAT ranges from 17% to 27% depending on the country. This online shop does NOT collect VAT at checkout so you will be charged by customs upon the goods entering your country. You may also experience “landing fees” when your package goes through customs, sometimes including taxes from the destination country plus a “brokerage fee”. These fees will be different in every country. We have no control over these fees, nor can we predict them.

We use USPS and UPS shipping tables. Prices are based on size, weight, speed, and distance. All package rates include tracking except USPS First Class. First Class packages are NOT insured so the cheaper price does come with some risk.

Currently, we are offering free shipping to the Contiguous U.S. for orders of more than $100.

Please let us know if you’re not satisfied with your purchase within two weeks of receiving your order and we will provide a refund once it is returned. Return shipping costs and safe arrival of returns are the responsibility of the customer.

If you purchased the item in the Shop, bring it back in its original condition with your receipt and we’ll provide a refund. If you originally paid by card, we’ll put it back on your card. If you paid in cash, we’ll give you your refund in cash.

Preorders are not refundable.

December holiday returns are extended to January 15th. We don’t require a receipt, but we do require the name of the purchaser to locate the transaction electronically. If you make a purchase and designate Local Pick Up, the two-week return policy applies. Forgotten Local Pick Up orders are not refundable.

If we messed up your order, please give us a call or email us here. We are a humble but mighty microbusiness. We occasionally make mistakes. We are sorry. If we didn’t make it right, please let us try. Call or email us here.

If your item arrives damaged, please contact us within two weeks of receiving your item with photos of the damage to help us with our claim with the shipper. We will replace it with an identical item or one of equal value.

If you live in Colorado, you will be charged 8.81% sales tax online and in The Shop on Market St.

We accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and PayPal online. We also accept Apple Pay and tap in the Shop on Market St.