A Letter From ABA President Russ Lawrence

Dear ABA Colleagues:

Russ Lawrence

I am honored to be writing to you as the new president of the American Booksellers Association. It's humbling to be among the company of so many remarkable booksellers who have served ABA with distinction, both as officers and as directors. I look on this as a chance for me to continue paying down a debt that I have owed ABA for years, for all that this organization has done to keep independent bookstores viable players in the marketplace. I'm looking forward to the coming year with excitement, and promise to bring to the association all the skills and energy that I have to offer.

We're all operating in a world of rapid-fire change, and face a variety of challenges -- cultural, economic, and technological. One important goal for me as president will be to stay focused on the key issues that lie ahead. Though we all cherish our "independence," going forward we will need to draw on our sense of unity as well, and maintain our commitment to do whatever it takes to keep independent bookstores both economically viable and indispensable to our communities. I will also work to erase any boundaries that may remain when members think about "the ABA." There should be no real distinction between the membership, the board, and ABA staff -- it's all "us."

To accomplish our goals together, the board will need to hear all of your ideas, suggestions, and concerns, and we will provide many, many opportunities for you to share them, always in an atmosphere of responsiveness and mutual respect. The more we work together, the better we can all serve our individual stores and, importantly, the entire community of the book. Then, when independents need to speak with one voice, that voice will be yours, multiplied a thousand times over.

BookExpo America & the ABA Convention

This year's BEA and ABA Convention was one of the best ever. By showtime, roughly one-third of ABA's membership had registered for the show, 573 stores in all. That represents the largest percentage of total membership in many years, and that level of participation builds our credibility in the world of books.

Perhaps more important was the nod to the future: The attendees included 57 prospective booksellers who successfully completed the ABA-sponsored Booksellers School, facilitated by Donna Paz and Mark Kaufman of Paz & Associates. The future was also well represented by the Emerging Leaders caucus, with which ABA has been working closely for the last year. These were both especially heartening to me, as another personal goal of mine is to see independent stores begin to regain some ground and "re-colonize" areas as new opportunities arise.

However, if any aspect of this year's ABA Convention or BEA was less than what you hoped for, please let me know, or contact our association staff. If your comment relates more to BEA operations or programming, please contact BEA Show Director Lance Fensterman. A former bookseller, Lance is as motivated as we are to make sure the show meets our needs. You can reach him at [email protected].

I'm grateful to the many booksellers who have sent enthusiastic comments about ABA's programming in Washington, particularly our educational offerings. As you know, providing quality education is the number-one goal in the association's Strategic Plan, based on the clear input we received from hundreds of member bookstores. Seeing more than 600 booksellers show up for our "Day of Education" only reinforced the importance of that goal.

As proud as we are about the educational opportunities we've delivered over the last two years, we are continually looking for ways to improve them. I encourage you to share with us any ideas you may have to make the program stronger.

ABA is also beginning to post our existing educational programs online, complete with videotaped presenters and PowerPoint slides. You can find "The 2% Solution," "Increasing Margin," and "Cost of Goods Sold 101" at www.bookweb.org/education/. Try it, and let us know what you think. It's just like being there, only smaller!

The Town Hall and Annual Meeting

At this year's ABA Town Hall and Annual Meeting some members commented on the transparency of ABA and its operations. This is an important issue. I have been both a close observer and, for four years now, a participant in ABA governance, and I am proud to say that the trend has always been toward greater transparency and openness within the organization.

In my experience over the last four years the board has been thorough, engaged, and proactive on every issue, including CEO compensation, which was also discussed at the Town Hall meeting. In fact, two years ago the board undertook to renegotiate the CEO's contract, before the prior contract had expired. We recognized that the organization is changing rapidly, and we took proactive steps to acknowledge that. I applaud the foresight and leadership of my predecessors on the ABA board on this and other matters.

The CEO contract was the result of a long, thorough process, taking into account all relevant, publicly available salary guidelines. It was negotiated with the help of the board's own attorney, and the process has been vetted and approved by our Governance Review Committee, which annually reviews the actions of the board and the association, as called for in our bylaws (where it is also called the Audit Committee). The most recent reports of the Governance Review Committee are found at www.BookWeb.org/aba/.

ABA's year-end financial report is also, of course, posted on BookWeb, as is an informational copy of our latest Form 990, for those interested in ABA finances.

Looking Ahead

ABA's finances are in great shape, and as a result, the association is able to offer a robust set of services, programs, and member benefits. Last year, for example, those benefits included the spectacularly successful Winter Institute, where the educational programming and the meal events were free, and the rooms subsidized. Going forward, Book Sense continues to grow and thrive; BookWeb and the online Book Buyer's Handbook are being redesigned and reinvigorated; we are reaching out to underserved markets, such as Spanish-language booksellers; we're continually making improvements to BookSense.com; and we're strengthening our relationships with publishers, vendors, and others in the community of the book.

Of course, as president I will continue to work with my fellow board members and ABA staff to ensure that we carry out all of the goals in our Strategic Plan. Everything in the plan must potentially benefit our core membership. The components of the current plan -- conceived, constructed, and implemented based on your input -- go well beyond education, to include advocacy on behalf of booksellers, the Book Sense marketing program, investigation of new business models, providing access to the business "tools" that we need, and more. (You can read the full Strategic Plan on BookWeb.)

As I said at the Town Hall meeting, the issue of providing value for membership forms the basis of our agenda at every meeting. If you have constructive comments about how we can do better, we're listening.

I begin my term as president confident that ABA will be able to act on your input and suggestions, to continue to adapt and innovate, because of the hard work and talents of my fellow board members, the strength of our governance process, and our outstanding staff.

All that said (and I have already said more than I intended -- this started out as a "hi, let's talk" kind of note), I am begging for more input, and not just once a year at the Town Hall and Annual Meeting. Anyone with any kind of feedback -- positive or negative -- may contact me at the address below, or you may find contacts for the entire board on BookWeb.

Our Next Strategic Plan

ABA operates under a five-year Strategic Plan. Extensive membership input is the only thing that can lead to a successful Strategic Plan. (That's exactly the kind of wonky sentence I hoped I'd never have to write, but there it is.) We are just now beginning the process of developing our next plan, and, in the coming months, we'll be asking you to participate in various "front-loading" exercises, where we can gauge your thoughts on the future direction and priorities of ABA. It's more interesting than it sounds, and more important than you can imagine.

I, and the other board members, will be at as many of the regional association meetings this fall as possible; we'll be at next year's Winter Institute, and we'll be attending the next round of Spring Forums. Please take advantage of these and other opportunities to share with us your ideas, comments, critiques, and suggestions. I promise we'll address them to the best of our abilities.

Circumstances in independent bookselling are changing almost daily, and ABA as an organization needs to be just as nimble and proactive as our member stores. We can't do it without your help, so please, don't wait for a "formal" opportunity to contact us. Ping us and say "hello" sometime -- we're booksellers just like you, and enjoy the dialogue, whether it's across the front counter or across the Web.

Need help with anything else? Post a question on the "Ask ABA" section of the BookWeb forums.

In closing (you thought I'd never get here!) I simply want to reiterate that ABA is you and I, magnified. The more fully the membership participates in the association, the more successful we'll all be in crafting a better future for independent booksellers.

Russ Lawrence
ABA President
Chapter One Book Store
Hamilton, Montana
[email protected]