Main Street/Shop Local

BookPeople’s first National Bookstore Day for the BookPeople Nation celebrated the local spirit of Austin, Texas, during one of the store’s quieter sales seasons. “We got terrific local press,” said co-owner Steve Bercu, and “we were the number-one pick in the daily paper for what to do over the weekend.”

The nine regional bookseller associations announced late last week that they were partnering to collaboratively support a national Independent Bookstore Day on May 2, 2015. 

At this month’s National Book Festival, official bookseller Politics & Prose will be sharing the spotlight with fellow indie bookstores through a specially created wallpaper showcasing all of ABA’s member stores.

Customers entering Collected Works Bookstore & Coffeehouse in Santa Fe, New Mexico, this week are being greeted by a display of the Authors United ad that ran in the August 10 edition of the New York Times.

Indie stores experiment with bundling program; Powell’s reopens Green, Blue rooms after renovations; Monte Cristo Bookshop goes nonprofit; Find Waldo Local a success at Larkspur’s DIESEL

Bookstore Day for the BookPeople Nation; Books on the Common celebrates 30 years; Face in a Book owner talks expansion, sales, success; Firefly works with senior citizens to help school build library

West Virginia collects $19 million in sales tax from online retailers; NAIBA seeks Independent Bookstore Day logo; Cape Henlopen school board does away with reading list; Macmillan expands public library e-lending pilot program

As customers enjoy treats and prizes at parties concluding July’s celebration of Find Waldo Local, MSNBC’s Your Business is visiting two indie bookstores to report on the buy local spirit fostered by the event.

Readers who preorder signed, personalized copies of Alan Gratz’s The League of Seven from Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café will receive a specially printed, numbered chapbook featuring a short story prequel to the trilogy. 

Tim Godfray, CEO of the Booksellers Association of the United Kingdom and Ireland, visited ABA’s office this week and sat down with BTW to discuss independent bookselling in the U.K., its current challenges, and its most successful promotions. 

On Thursday, July 17, in a letter sent to every member of the U.S. Senate, Advocates for Independent Business urged congressional support for the Marketplace and Internet Tax Fairness Act, which was introduced in the Senate on Tuesday, July 15.

Nine stores across the city offered book giveaways, raffles, tasty treats, and discounts to excited customers during Chicago Independent Bookstore Day on July 12.

NCIBA has announced that Penguin Random House will be supporting next spring’s celebration of California Bookstore Day with a $15,000 sponsorship.

The third annual celebration of Find Waldo Local, which kicked off on July 1, encourages customers to frequent shops in participating towns in search of the elusive character.

California Bookstore Day set to return; Barbara Kline Pope becomes AAUP president; BALLE conference highlights featured