Forums

Every week dozens of booksellers seek and share advice and information about bookselling and the book industry on BookWeb's Idea Exchange Forums. Here BTW presents a look at some of this week's topics, with the hope that more booksellers will join in.

ABA member booksellers who haven't taken a recent look at BookWeb.org's new Idea Exchange are missing out on the camaraderie of a vibrant, insightful bookseller virtual community. Every week booksellers are posting comments about the industry, seeking advice, and offering great ideas.

ABA will be holding a Booksellers Forum and Education Program in both northern and southern California during the week of February 13. The first forum will be on Tuesday, February 15, in conjunction with the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association (NCIBA) at its offices in the Presidio in San Francisco. The following day the program will be held in conjunction with the Southern California Booksellers Association (SCBA) at the Long Beach Hilton in Long Beach. The programs will run from 10:15 a.m. - 3:00 p.m., and lunch is included.

ABA's 2005 Booksellers Forum Tour and Education Program, which launched earlier this month, will be coming to a location near you. During the next four months, ABA senior staff and representatives of the ABA Board and Booksellers Advisory Council will meet with booksellers in every region of the country to provide an update on various ABA programs and initiatives and to gather input that will be used to shape future association efforts.

This week, ABA released a list of the 2004 Book Sense Bestsellers, a compilation of the year's most popular titles at independent bookstores.

On Wednesday, February 2, the American Booksellers Association will hold a Booksellers Forum and Education Program, in conjunction with the Mid-South Independent Booksellers Association (MSIBA), at BookPeople in Austin, Texas. All MSIBA and ABA member booksellers are invited to attend the events, which run from 10:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

'Tis the season to stash the wrapping paper, tally the sales figures, and begin planning for the future.

The American Booksellers Association kicks off its 2005 Winter/Spring Booksellers Forum season and 2005 Education Program on Saturday, January 8, in Salt Lake City. The program, held in conjunction with the Mountains & Plains Booksellers Association (MPBA), will take place from 9:00 a.m. - 3:15 p.m. at The King's English Bookstore's Fresco Restaurant. All MPBA and ABA member booksellers are invited, and ABA hopes as many area booksellers as possible will attend.

The American Booksellers Association will kick off its 2005 Winter/Spring Booksellers Forum season and 2005 Education Program on Saturday, January 8, in Salt Lake City. The program, held in conjunction with the Mountains & Plains Booksellers Association (MPBA), will take place from 9:00 a.m. - 3:15 p.m. at The King's English Bookstore's Fresco Restaurant. All MPBA and ABA member booksellers are invited to attend.

When Brian Sweet of Trail's End Bookstore in Winthrop, Washington, wanted to refresh his store's offering of greeting cards, he took his quest for new suppliers to the newly redesigned Idea Exchange on the ABA Web site, www.BookWeb.org.

In early November, ABA launched new and improved forum software on the BookWeb.org Idea Exchange, providing all ABA bookstore members a unique opportunity to exchange ideas and share thoughts with fellow booksellers or with the ABA Board and staff.

On Wednesday, May 5, ABA's winter/spring Booksellers Forum tour concluded in Pittsboro, North Carolina, with a program that was postponed in January due to inclement weather. ABA CEO Avin Mark Domnitz and COO Oren Teicher conducted the forum, which was held in conjunction with the Southeast Booksellers Association (SEBA) at McIntyre's Fine Books at Fearrington Village. Topics at the forum ranged from the Book Sense Gift Card Program to the BookSense.com Co-op Reimbursement Program to the Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP).

ABA's winter/spring Booksellers Forum tour concludes in Pittsboro, North Carolina, on Wednesday, May 5, with a program that was postponed in January due to inclement weather. ABA CEO Avin Mark Domnitz and COO Oren Teicher will conduct the forum, held in conjunction with the Southeast Booksellers Association, at McIntyre's Fine Books at Fearrington Village (near Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill).

The American Booksellers Association, in conjunction with the New England Booksellers Association (NEBA), held a Booksellers Forum at the National Yiddish Book Center on the grounds of Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts, on Thursday, April 22. The forum, the second of the season in the New England area, followed the NEBA meetings and a meeting of the New England Children's Bookselling Advisory Council (NECBA).

On Sunday, April 25, at the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association's (NAIBA) Spring Workshop in Philadelphia, ABA CEO Avin Mark Domnitz discussed the 2003 ABACUS study and how bookstore owners and managers can use the results to make better operational decisions. The session kicked off a full day of NAIBA programming at the Sheraton Society Hill.