Partner Spotlight is a series designed to highlight the vendors that partner with ABA to offer discounted products, services, and business opportunities to ABA members. Each installment, we interview a different partner to learn more about their organization and why indie bookstores matter to them.
Every day, thousands of booksellers worldwide save time and money as they order more of their inventory direct from the publisher using Pubeasy and Pubnet, MVB’s electronic ordering services.
Bookselling This Week met with Jill Hendrix, a Customer Success Specialist at MVB, to learn more.
Bookselling This Week: Why don’t we start with an overview of your company, because if you’re new to bookselling, you may not know anything about MVB or Pubnet or Pubeasy.
Jill Hendrix: To start, our parent company, MVB, has deep roots in the book industry. We’re headquartered in Germany and owned by the German Publishers & Booksellers Association — which makes the Frankfurt Book Fair our sister company.
Even though MVB acquired Pubeasy and Pubnet in 2017, the services were started many years ago and have long played a vital role in the American book industry. So, while not everybody knows the name MVB, most established booksellers know about Pubeasy and Pubnet.
BTW: And what are Pubeasy and Pubnet?
JH: These two services help booksellers with electronic ordering, which is so much more efficient than placing orders with publishers on the phone or by email. They save booksellers time and money by letting them order directly from multiple publishers at the highest discount and best margin they can get.
BTW: If I'm a new bookseller, the first question I would ask is, “What is the difference between Pubnet and Pubeasy and which one is right for me?”
JH: There are several differences, but for booksellers, what matters most is your point-of-sale system.
If you are using an EDI-capable point of sale system (which tend to be all of the ones that were created specifically for booksellers) then you should definitely use Pubnet, because it’s going to connect directly with the system that has all your sales and inventory information. Pubnet also has the largest number of publishers, so you can order direct from pretty much anyone.
If you're a bookseller who uses a generic point-of-sale system like Lightspeed or Square that is not EDI-capable, then you would choose Pubeasy. On Pubeasy you can order inventory through our website, which supports the Big Five trade publishers and Scholastic as well as some others.
BTW: That just breaks it down so well! Obviously, these are useful services, but how easy is it for someone to get up and running?
JH: Booksellers are busy people, so we work really hard to reduce the obstacles. The good news is that most booksellers can be up and running in a couple of days.
Both Pubnet and Pubeasy are free for ABA members. We usually charge a $75 setup fee for Pubnet and require a Standard Address Number (SAN), but as an ABA partner, we are waiving our setup fee for ABA members and can provide one free SAN per member — a $150 value.
For new booksellers, the biggest hurdle is that these services were designed primarily to work with publisher accounts that are set up on credit terms. So, if you are a newer bookstore and you’re pre-paying with a credit card, then it makes a lot of sense to start with PRH and Hachette, who allow their prepay accounts to use our services. Then you can add other suppliers as you build your roster of terms accounts.
In my role as Customer Success Specialist, it's my main job to work with booksellers to help you get set up and using our services. Everyone is encouraged to reach out to me, not only about getting started with our services, but also about how best to establish terms accounts, how to order effectively — the whole process!
BTW: Oh, awesome! What sets Pubnet/Pubeasy apart from other ordering options available to booksellers?
JH: You can always order electronically from wholesalers, which often makes sense for rush or special orders. The downside is that you pay more and you miss out on some discounts and promotions.
Edelweiss also offers a form of direct ordering, but it differs from Pubeasy and Pubnet because it requires an assigned sales rep who places the order on your behalf. You can place an order at midnight, but it might sit there until your rep sees it and puts it in.
Our services offer a direct connection between the bookseller and the publisher’s fulfillment system. Your order gets processed faster because there's no human delay and you get an order confirmation right away, as well as the highest possible discount.
BTW: Do you want to talk a little bit about the role of books or indie bookstores in your own life?
JH: As a matter of fact, I owned an indie bookstore for 24 years called Fiction Addiction and taught for five years with the Professional Bookseller School!
I love this industry. I love that I was able to stay in it by working for MVB, and I still identify with all the indie booksellers out there. I know how hard they work.
Book-wise, of course I love to read, so I love going to Winter Institute and seeing all of the upcoming titles.
And speaking of Winter Institute, we’ll be at table 9 in the Vendor Showcase in Pittsburgh! Anyone who wants to learn more should come by and have a chat!
Pubeasy is free to use. Pubnet's setup fee is waived for ABA bookstore members. Visit the ABA Partners page for more details.