Vancouver-based literary nonprofit Upstart & Crow Literary Arts Studio is heading east.

A new location of the bookstore and studio will open in Ottawa’s Byward Market neighbourhood this fall. The exact opening date is yet to be confirmed but is expected to be in October, Upstart & Crow said this week. Ottawa-specific programming will be announced once the new location opens. The nonprofit is currently looking to hire for the Ottawa team.

Upstart & Crow first opened on Vancouver’s Granville Island in 2020. It operates a second location on the Sunshine Coast in partnership with Persephone Brewing in Gibsons, B.C.

“We see great potential—and impact—in offering a physical space in Ottawa that builds community, stokes new ideas, and supports creatives,” Upstart & Crow co-founder Zoe Grams said in an email. “As a city at the forefront of political decision-making and a literary hub in its own right, we see a fit between the clever, committed, and creative people in our national capital and what we aim to build with Upstart spaces.”

Net revenue from Upstart & Crow’s book and product sales goes towards their nonprofit activities, which include a series of writers in residence programs that launched in 2025, as well as literary events. Programming is also funded in part by donations.