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New Access Program for Bookstores Without Reps
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The NCIBA is working to adopt a terrific new program created by the New Atlantic Independent Bookselllers Association (NAIBA). It gives booksellers who don't see many (or any) reps but who do have Edelweiss accounts an opportunity to view marked-up catalogs from various publishers' sales reps. (By the way, if you don't have an Edelweiss account, it's a snap to create - click here.)
We're in the process of lining up participating publishers, but all the major houses are on NAIBA's list and we expect similar support here. When we have a publisher list in place, we'll make it available. Bookstores that are not already being serviced by reps - in person or by phone - can choose which catalogs they wish to receive. The catalogs will have been "edited" by a sales rep, so booksellers can see what is being recommended to others from the list. Participating bookstores can order books from these catalogs directly from the publisher or through wholesalers - whatever their normal channel is.
More to come soon!
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ABA Forum Included
NCIBA Spring Gathering
Is Sunday, April 7
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Save the date - our annual Spring Gathering will be held on Sunday, April 7, once again in the Thoreau Center in the Presidio. We'll have details of all the day's activities out to all booksellers later in February. But we we are happy to say that members of ABA's senior staff will again be present to conduct the annual Member Forum and to offer an education workshop, "The Top Ten Things You Must Do Now" (there's a call for bookseller input to this session elsewhere in this newsletter).
Count on three other education workshops, a rep picks session after lunch, good food and company, and more. We will also conclude the day with our annual author reception featuring local writers with new books on the shelves or soon to arrive.
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Northern California Independent Bookstore Bestsellers for 2012
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This list represents cumulative sales reported by NCIBA member during the calendar year 2012 and is provided courtesy of ABA. Sixty NCIBA bookstores post a printed copy of the weekly bestseller list, which is also published in print and online by the San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury News, Oakland Tribune, and San Mateo Times.
HARDCOVER FICTION
1. Gone Girl
Gillian Flynn, Crown
2. The Casual Vacancy
J.K. Rowling, Little Brown
3. Telegraph Avenue
Michael Chabon, Harper
4. Flight Behavior
Barbara Kingsolver, Harper
5. Sacré Bleu
Christopher Moore, Morrow
6. A Dance With Dragons
George R.R. Martin, Bantam
7. Bring Up the Bodies
Hilary Mantel, Holt
8. Death Comes to Pemberley
P.D. James, Knopf
9. The Sense of an Ending
Julian Barnes, Knop
10. This Is How You Lose Her
Junot Díaz, Riverhead,
11. The Paris Wife
Paula McLain, Ballantine
12. The Round House
Louise Erdrich, Harper
13. A Hologram for the King
Dave Eggers, McSweeney's
14. Shadow of Night
Deborah Harkness, Viking
15. In One Person
John Irving, S&S
HARDCOVER NONFICTION
1. Wild
Cheryl Strayed, Knopf
2. Unbroken
Laura Hillenbrand, Random House
3. Darth Vader and Son
Jeffrey Brown, Chronicle
4. I Could Pee on This
Francesco Marciuliano, Chronicle
5. Steve Jobs
Walter Isaacson, S&S,
6. Drift
Rachel Maddow, Crown
7. No Easy Day
Mark Owen, Dutton
8. Help, Thanks, Wow
Anne Lamott, Riverhead
9. Quiet
Susan Cain, Crown
10. Goodnight iPad
Ann Droyd, Blue Ride
11. Behind the Beautiful Forevers
Katherine Boo, Random House
12. Killing Lincoln
Bill O'Reilly, Martin Dugard, Holt
13. Thinking, Fast and Slow
Daniel Kahneman, FSG
14. Imagine
Jonah Lehrer, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
15. Go the F**k to Sleep
Adam Mansbach, Ricardo Cortes (Illus.), Akashic
TRADE PAPERBACK FICTION
1. Fifty Shades of Grey
E.L. James, Vintage
2. Fifty Shades Darker
E.L. James, Vintage
3. Fifty Shades Freed
E.L. James, Vintage
4. The Tiger's Wife
Téa Obreht, Random House
5. State of Wonder
Ann Patchett, Harper Perennial
6. The Art of Fielding
Chad Harbach, Back Bay
7. The Buddha in the Attic
Julie Otsuka, Anchor
8. The Sense of an Ending
Julian Barnes, Vintage
9. Cloud Atlas
David Mitchell, Random House
10. Swamplandia!
Karen Russell, Vintage
11. The Language of Flowers
Vanessa Diffenbaugh, Ballantine
12. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Stephen Chbosky, MTV Books
13. Life of Pi
Yann Martel, Mariner
14. Wolf Hall
Hilary Mantel, Picador
15. The Night Circus
Erin Morgenstern, Anchor
TRADE PAPERBACK NONFICTION
1. Bossypants
Tina Fey, Reagan Arthur Books
2. In the Garden of Beasts
Erik Larson, Broadway
3. Unlikely Friendships
Jennifer S. Holland, Workman
4. F in Exams
Richard Benson, Chronicle
5. The Happiness Project
Gretchen Rubin, Harper
6. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Rebecca Skloot, Broadway
7. The Hare With Amber Eyes
Edmund de Waal, Picador
8. Steal Like an Artist
Austin Kleon, Workman
9. Outliers
Malcolm Gladwell, Back Bay
10. Team of Rivals
Doris Kearns Goodwin, S&S
11. Tiny Beautiful Things
Cheryl Strayed, Vintage
12. Born to Run
Christopher McDougall, Vintage
13. Turn Right at Machu Picchu
Mark Adams, Plume
14.Empire of the Summer Moon
S.C. Gwynne, Scribner
15. Blood, Bones & Butter
Gabrielle Hamilton, Random House
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Looking For A Few
Good Board Members
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The NCIBA Nominating Committee is currently soliciting booksellers who may be interested in serving on the NCIBA Board of Directors. There are 10 meetings a year and we ask for a three-year commitment, which is a lot for many, but the benefits of meeting regularly and working with smart, committed bookseller peers are hard to beat.
If you'd like more information or would like to put your (or someone else's) name up for consideration, contact hut@nciba.com before February 20.
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Indie Impact National Summary: Indies Give Back Over Three Times as Much as Chains
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Reprinted from BOOKSELLING THIS WEEK
By Dave Grogan
Communities as different as Las Vegas, New Mexico, and Louisville, Kentucky, have at least one thing in common: Their independent businesses recirculate a substantially greater proportion of their revenues back into the local economy than do their chain competitors. This, according to a national study, The Indie Impact Study Series: National Summary Report, a summary of 10 localized studies conducted by Civic Economics, in partnership with the American Booksellers Association, over an 11-month period from 2011 - 2012.
For the Indie Impact series, Civic Economics worked with small business organizations in 10 American communities to survey independent, storefront businesses engaged in the retail trade or food and beverage services.
As with previous studies in Austin, Chicago, San Francisco, Phoenix, Grand Rapids, and New Orleans, Civic Economics compared the recirculation of revenue in the local economy for participating independent businesses with that of major chain competitors. In total, 106 retailers and 28 restaurants answered the survey. Reports were compiled for each community, as well as an aggregated national study summary.
Among the national study's findings:
· Nationwide, local retailers and restaurants for all completed surveys recirculate 52.3 percent of revenue locally, while chains recirculate just 15.8 percent. This means indies keep 3.3 times as much revenue in the local economy as do their chain competitors.
· Looking at just retailers, local businesses recirculate 47.7 percent of revenue locally, compared to 13.6 percent for chains, meaning indie retailers keep 3.5 times as much revenue in the local economy.
· Nationwide, by retail segment, sporting goods, book, and music stores combined recirculated 39.1 percent of revenues locally.
"Each Indie Impact study further drives home the point that we've been making for years that shopping at your local, independent retailer is better for the fiscal health of a community," said ABA CEO Oren Teicher. "At a time when many cities and towns are faced with budgetary and job creation challenges, these figures simply provide yet another great reason for shopping local."
For each study, Civic Economics asked local businesses to provide the proportion of revenue expended in five categories: Profits paid out to local owners; Wages paid to local workers; Procurement of goods and services for internal use; Procurement of local goods for resale; and Charitable giving within the community.
For chain competitors, the aggregate value of these was estimated from public records.
Stores, community groups, or independent business alliances that are interested in participating in a new round of the Indie Impact Study Series should contact Dan Houston at Civic Economics to discuss participation.
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Quick Survey To Help ABA Create Workshop
| If you haven't yet done so, The American Booksellers
Association is asking booksellers to share some of the creative things they have done to make their stores more successful and profitable.
Booksellers' input, via a short, online survey, will help ABA formulate the Spring Forum season's educational component, "The Top 10 Things You Must Do Now!"
This session will be presented at 11 Spring Booksellers Forums, including the NCIBA's Spring Gathering on Sunday, April 7.
The top 10 ideas will feature best practices covering a broad range of categories including marketing/promotion, finances, store operations, human resources, inventory, ambiance, customer service, and more. The deadline for survey responses is February 18.
Take the survey now.
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ABA MEMBERSHIP OFFER!
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As a member of NCIBA, we would like to extend to non-members of ABA a special offer to join our national association for $50 for your first year. Founded in 1900, the ABA is a not-for-profit trade organization devoted to meeting the needs of its members through education, business products and services, marketing and advocacy.
Now more than ever, whether a new or used bookstore, it is important for indie bookstores to be part of a larger network. And while the economy is still difficult, and the industry ever-changing, we are confident that indies have a profitable future ahead.
ABA membership includes:
Education and networking, where you can expand your knowledge of the industry through web-based curriculum guides as well as programs like the annual Winter Institute;
The Book Buyers Handbook, a fully-searchable database directory of up-to-date information on publisher's contact information, current promotions and special offers;
IndieBound D.I.Y, with over 100 design files that can be used for in-store and online marketing, all inspired by local first and independent business advocacy;
Online Bookseller forums, where you can communicate with other indies all over the country and post questions and comments;
For a full list of ABA membership benefits, please visit this page. According to NCIBA executive director Hut Landon, this is an offer that no bookseller should pass up. "One factor that is pivotal to the success of independent booksellers is their association with ABA and their regional organization. Trust me when I tell you that no other category of retailers has access to the kind of education, advocacy, information, and overall support that independent bookstores do. Furthermore, the ABA's influence in bettering publisher terms over the years has positively impacted the bottom line of every member bookstore."
This offer expires on May 15, 2013, so join today using the promo code regional13. |
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Poster Reminds Customers That Books Make Great Gifts All Year Round
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The NCIBA has done a new color printing of its poster touting books as gifts that's available free to any interested bookstore member. The message is simple - books make great gifts for any person and any occasion; to date, more than 75 stores have requested and received posters.
The impetus for the poster's creation came from the notion that, although book buyers may spend less on themselves in tough times, they will usually not shirk on spending when purchasing a gift. So why promote books as great gift ideas only during the holiday season? Book customers purchase gifts all year round, so let's remind them that books are the perfect answer.
The poster, measuring 11x17 and printed on card stock, can be ordered for free by emailing hut@nciba.com. Or use the concept to create your own messaging and let us know what you come up with.
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Bookmarks Promoting "Pearl Earring" Show at de Young Still Available
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We' still have a quantity of bookmarks promoting the  de Young museum's Girl with a Pearl Earring: Dutch Paintings from the
Mauritshuis exhibition running through June 2. The bookmarks also can be presented at the de Young for a 20% admission discount. If you would like to order (more) bookmarks, drop me a line at hut@nciba.com.
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CLASSIFIEDS
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JOB OFFERING
BOOKSTORE GENERAL MANAGER - SANTA BARBARA, CA
Granada Books is opening a community bookstore in Santa Barbara and is seeking a General Manager to start in April or May. We are just now in the store's opening process, our lease is just signed, we are in the midst of build-out, and are scheduled to have our soft opening June 2nd.
Santa Barbra is a beautiful city to work and live in. It hugs the coast, squeezed between mountains and the sea, and has a mild climate with a literate workforce based in film, art, and/or high-tech (5 Nobel Laureates at UCSB), and the food's quite good.
In 2011, Boarders and B&N closed their Santa Barbra stores, causing more than 50,000 sq ft of bookselling retail space to disappear from our downtown, and this shock has resulted in the community formation of Granada Books. We will be located in the historic arts district, next to the Granada Theatre, and an events patio will be constructed to the rear of the bookstore in 2014 for author events and performances.
Our bookstore's General Manager needs to have energy, strong interpersonal skills, a respect for written word, leadership and management experience, a good head for business and numbers, an ability to network and to create marketing/event opportunities, and ideally, some familiarity with bookstore operations. Someone who wants to be in on it at the beginning, someone who wants to lead others and a community to a perfect bookstore. Generous salary and benefits. Send résumé and statement of interest by 3/15/13 to MKaufman
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