- MEMBERSHIP
If you have ever been curious about how your independent bookstore shapes up compared to others — whether in terms of key expense categories or sales performance — each year, the American Booksellers Association offers you an opportunity to find out.
ABACUS is a free annual report that provides detailed information about where your store falls across a range of areas, including profitability, productivity, and financial management. Having access to the ABACUS report is like adding a financial officer to your staff; it can inform you of areas that need improvement, areas in which your store is succeeding, and everything in between.
The annual survey that informs the report opens in early May, and booksellers who fill it out will receive in return a customized report in September. The more stores that fill out the survey, the more robust the reports will be.
Much of the information needed to fill out the survey will come from a store’s income statement and balance sheet, and all data shared through the ABACUS survey is confidential. Booksellers have several weeks in which to complete the survey, and the survey can be saved in progress and returned to at any time.
Questions about the ABACUS survey and report can be addressed to ABA Senior Strategy Officer Dan Cullen.
For more information about ABACUS, check out the members-only materials on the ABA Education Resources page (under "filter results by tags," select "ABACUS").
The American Booksellers Association, a national not-for-profit trade organization, works with booksellers and industry partners to ensure the success and profitability of independently owned book retailers, and to assist in expanding the community of the book.
Independent bookstores act as community anchors; they serve a unique role in promoting the open exchange of ideas, enriching the cultural life of communities, and creating economically vibrant neighborhoods.
PRESS CONTACT: Dan Cullen (dan@bookweb.org)
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Regional Associations
California Independent Booksellers
Great Lakes Independent Booksellers
Midwest Independent Booksellers
Mountains and Plains Independent Booksellers
New Atlantic Independent Booksellers
New England Independent Booksellers
Pacific Northwest Independent Booksellers
Southern Independent Booksellers