NCIBA Offers Posters Highlighting Benefits of Independents

Click on either poster for a downloadable PDF version.

To help booksellers educate consumers about the benefits independent businesses bring to their communities, the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association (NCIBA) has created two posters featuring attention-getting talking points. One poster compares Amazon.com's contributions to California, in terms of taxes, donations, and employment, to that of independent booksellers. A second poster, entitled "Local Businesses Support Local Economies," cites Civic Economics' "The Andersonville Study of Retail Economics," which highlights the economic value of local businesses compared with chains.

Hut Landon, executive director of NCIBA, told BTW that NCIBA's board of directors and bookseller members wanted to address both the greater contributions made by independent booksellers versus Amazon and independent businesses in general versus large chains. "They felt they'd like to have talking points or posters that dealt with both issues," he said.

NCIBA created the posters quickly to have them ready for the holiday season when traffic is high and customers who ordinarily might not visit the bookstore would have a chance to read the posters and learn of the civic advantages of independents.

"The response from booksellers has been great," said Landon. "As of now, 25 bookstores have responded and ordered posters. One bookseller ordered four of the [Local Businesses Support Local Economies] posters to bring to the Chamber of Commerce and other local businesses." Landon noted that the posters provided an effective way to start a dialog with other businesses.

Booksellers who are interested in the "Local Businesses Support Local Economies!" poster can e-mail Hut Landon at [email protected] with contact information, including a mailing address, for a free 11" x 17" poster. Supplies are limited. Landon added that booksellers are free to adapt both of the posters to their specific regions.