About ABA

The American Booksellers Association will reprise its very popular Hotel ABA, in conjunction with BookExpo America 2007 in New York City, at a location in downtown Brooklyn, close to the Brooklyn Bridge.

Building on the success of this past January's inaugural event, the American Booksellers Association has announced plans to hold its Second Annual Winter Institute on Thursday and Friday, February 1 and 2, 2007, in Portland, Oregon.

The 2007 Winter Institute will once again feature two full days of free educational programming for the owners and staff of ABA member stores, special events, and meal functions, as well as hotel accommodations at a great price.

The American Booksellers Association's Board of Directors held its summer meeting in Essex, Vermont, from Thursday, July 6, through Sunday, July 9. The meeting began in the late afternoon on Thursday with an orientation to introduce new Board members Becky Anderson of Anderson's Bookshops in Naperville, Illinois, and Beth Puffer of Bank Street Bookstore in New York City to the association's policies and procedures.

In May, the American Booksellers Association launched "ABA Education Programs Online," a new benefit that provides member booksellers with access to streaming video of select ABA education programming through the association's trade website, BookWeb.org. Booksellers who have used the videos describe them as a highly effective and affordable way to bring educational programming to all staff members.

The American Booksellers Association will present an array of educational programming in conjunction with the nine regional booksellers association trade shows this fall. Featured sessions will include several of the most popular seminars from this year's BookExpo America and Winter Institute, as well as demonstrations of ABA affinity programs Contact Contact and Above The Treeline. Here's a look at the schedule to date.

Dear ABA Colleagues:

Book Sense and Earthcomber, a mobile marketing service that matches people on the go with their personal interests, have partnered to offer the directory of Book Sense store locations in a mobile GPS-enabled format for Palm OS and Windows Mobile PDAs and smart phones.

The American Booksellers Association is encouraging members who participated in its first-ever Legislative Day at BookExpo America, as well as those who did not, to follow up with their senators and representatives to encourage support for issues of import to independent booksellers. For those who met with their senators, representatives, or congressional staff, ABA suggests a note of thanks for the meeting would provide the perfect opportunity to reiterate their concerns.

This week, ABA announced the launch of "ABA Education Programs Online," a new benefit that provides ABA members with access to streaming video of ABA educational programming. By simply clicking on the "Professional Development" link on the BookWeb homepage, members can access ABA education programs, including "The 2% Solution," complete with videotaped presenters and PowerPoint slides.

Reports presented to American Booksellers Association members at the ABA Annual Meeting on Friday, May 19, at BookExpo America are available to all members in a PDF document on the association's trade website, BookWeb.org.

American Booksellers Association affinity partner Bank of America Merchant Services will waive the $75 application fee for booksellers who sign up for its credit card processing program through the end of May.

• ABA's 10th Annual Celebration of Bookselling
• ABA Town Hall Meeting
• ABA Annual Membership Meeting
• Booksellers & Authors Share Festive Book Sense Lunch
• BookSense.com & Gift Card Users Groups Meet
• The 2006 Children's Book & Author Breakfast
• Q&A With BSBY Fiction Winner Elizabeth Kostova

The Spoken Word radio program is continuing its expansion from a weekly show focusing on literature, culture, and the arts in the Southeast to a nationally syndicated program featuring events in different regions of the country.

The results of the American Booksellers Association's 2006 Board of Directors elections, which concluded on April 24, were recently certified by the association's election inspector, KPMG.

On Wednesday, April 26, at the Westford Regency Hotel & Conference Center in Westford, Massachusetts, the American Booksellers Association held a Booksellers Forum and Education Program in conjunction with the New England Booksellers Association (NEBA).