Feb 13, 2013

Window Shopping -- for Legal Services

New Retail location in Palo Alto, CA of Book Flip
Luda and I were out for dinner the other night, and elected to take a stroll down University Avenue in Palo Alto. Imagine our surprise when we noticed a new store in town -- where we could shop for "Advice on Pitching to Investors" or the latest book on business building on one, well-decorated location.

This shop, called "Book Flip,  is backed by Legal Force, one of the largest online databases for trademark and intellectual property AND a publisher of business books, is located at Ground Zero for start-ups, in the heart of Silicon Valley.

Our local paper (Palo Alto Weekly)  ran a great article about it shortly after it opened in February of this year, and had a great interview with Legal Force's CEO:


Raj Abhyanker wants to change the Public's perception of lawyers, streamline part of the legal process and resurrect the "Mainstreet bookstore" business model — all by opening a retail store in downtown Palo Alto that sells legal advice, books and tablets.

Abhyanker is the CEO of LegalForce, a company that aims to improve the access between lawyers and the public by using technology. He hopes his store, the LegalForce BookFlip, will transform the way the public looks at lawyers.

"We want people to realize that lawyers, like doctors, can provide help throughout various stages of life," said Abhyanker, who has a law degree, an MBA and a master's degree in electrical engineering. "Few people know where to turn for legal help. We solve this by letting the public walk into a major retail location for help."   Click here to read the rest of the Palo Alto Weekly's Article.








Is this a new, emerging model for selling legal services? Appointments will be low cost, access will be 7 days a week, and follow up appointments can be scheduled with LF's legal specialists for a negotiated price.