Indie Bookstore Day Order Form Opens Thursday, October 9, at 1:00 pm ET

In case you missed it, LeVar Burton will serve as our Indie Bookstore Ambassador, which includes championing independent bookstores on Indie Bookstore Day!

In accepting the invitation to be the ambassador, Burton said, “It is an extraordinary honor to be chosen as ABA’s Indie Bookstore Ambassador. From my earliest memories, books carried me beyond the world I knew. They let me explore distant planets, ancient kingdoms, and lives very different from my own. Independent bookstores are where those explorations began. They are sanctuaries of possibility where a single story can change a life.”
The Indie Bookstore Day 2026 Exclusives Catalog is now live for preview!
 

This year, we’ve partnered with Drawn & Quarterly illustrator, Tom Gauld, for an exclusive Indie Bookstore Day tote bag and t-shirt design! Tom Gauld is the cartoonist of the newly released Physics for Cats, published by Drawn & Quarterly. His comics and illustrations are regularly published in The Guardian, The New Yorker and New Scientist. He lives in London.
 
View Catalog

How Ordering Will Work on October 9:

  • The order form opens Thursday, October 9 at 1:00 pm ET/10:00 am PT.
  • You must be a logged-in ABA member to access the form. If you do not know your login credentials please email [email protected]. 
    • If you have not already, visit BookWeb now to log in and step through our new log-in process so you can avoid delays later when trying to order exclusives.
  • An Ingram Ship To Account number is required. You can set up an account at Ingram Onboarding.
  • Be sure to provide the shipping address (it may be different from the billing address).
  • If your store is in multiple locations, you must fill out a form for each store location (unless all ordered items can go to the main account’s location) or RDC.
  • You must purchase a minimum of 20 paid items (individually or bulk packaged — bulk packaged items count as 1) in order to receive free shipping and the freebies like bookmarks, activity kits, and stickers. If you select less than 20 paid items, you will not be able to order the freebies and will pay the $6 flat shipping fee. Free items, Blackwing Pencils and T-shirts do not count towards the 20-item minimum.
  • Due to supply chain issues we will not be changing orders after the closing date of November 13. 
  • Independent Bookstore Day is open to those who are members of ABA, as well as their regional booksellers association.

Check out the Independent Bookstore Day BookWeb page for additional details as well as the planning guide for an additional resource. 

How to Participate:

There are two ways to participate in Independent Bookstore Day:

  • By purchasing the exclusives. See above!
  • To only be included on the searchable map without any purchases, sign-ups are open October 9, 2025–March 31, 2026.

Key Dates to Know:

  • October 9, 2025: Indie Bookstore Day 2026 Order and Participation Form goes live
  • November 13, 2025: Indie Bookstore Day 2026 Exclusives Order Form closes
  • March 31, 2026: Indie Bookstore Day 2026 General Participation Form closes
  • April 3, 2026: Indie Bookstore Day Searchable Map goes live on IndieBound
  • Mid-April, 2026: All exclusives ship to bookstores
  • April 20–24, 2026: Indie Bookstore Day Spirit Week
  • April 25, 2026, the last Saturday in April: Independent Bookstore Day

Important Reminders:

  • Lock in your orders before November 13; changes won’t be possible due to supply chain issues.
  • Independent Bookstore Day is open to stores who are members of ABA, as well as their regional booksellers association.
  • Make sure to have an Ingram Account number ready to order exclusives. Set up your account at Ingram Onboarding.

Stay tuned for future updates via our newsletters, offering sneak peeks, marketing assets, and much more. 

Questions? Contact Courtney Wallace, Independent Bookstore Day Program Director at [email protected].

Independent Bookstore Day
American Booksellers Association
Copyright 2025
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