Spring Forums Coming Up in MPIBA, PNBA Regions

On Friday, March 29, the American Booksellers Association is hosting a Spring Forum in New Braunfels, Texas. Booksellers are invited to join ABA CEO Oren Teicher and Senior Strategy Officer Dan Cullen for an education session (10:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m.) and lunch and an open forum (12:15 p.m.–1:45 p.m.).

The program is presented in conjunction with the Mountains and Plains Independent Booksellers Association (MPIBA); full programming can be found here. The MPIBA Spring Forum will take place at the Faust Hotel in New Braunfels, Texas, located at 240 South Seguin Avenue.   

A second MPIBA show will be held on Wednesday, April 10, at the Origin Hotel Red Rocks in Golden, Colorado.

On Monday, April 1, the American Booksellers Association is hosting a Spring Forum in Portland, Oregon. Booksellers can join Teicher, Cullen, and ABA Board president Robert Sindelar of Third Place Books in Seattle, Washington, for an education session (10:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m.) and lunch and an open forum (12:00 p.m.–1:30 p.m.).

The program is presented in conjunction with the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association (PNBA). The PNBA Spring Forum will take place at the Kennedy School in Portland, Oregon, located at 5736 N.E. 33rd Avenue.   

Booksellers planning to attend either event are asked to RSVP to ABA Senior Membership Manager Daniel O’Brien.

Each spring forum event in New Braunfels and Portland will feature an open forum discussion of industry issues plus the new education session “ABACUS and Pre-Orders: Two Programs You Can’t Do Without.” The session, to be led by ABA at each of the 10 forums, offers an update on two initiatives critical to the success of any independent bookstore: an active pre-orders campaign and participation in the annual ABACUS financial survey. 

As part of the open forum segment of the program, booksellers will have the opportunity to discuss any of their concerns related to ABA, the book industry in general, and other issues. The spring forum discussions are a critically important vehicle for ABA to gather feedback from members, and all are encouraged to come prepared to discuss their concerns.

All independent booksellers — ABA members and non-members alike — are invited to attend any of ABA’s Spring Forums.

Try Out an ABA Membership

Independent booksellers attending one of the Spring Forums are invited to sign up to test drive an ABA membership for free. This offer applies to stores that have not been ABA members in the past two years. Booksellers can join between now and May 15 to enjoy all the benefits of membership through August 31.

To take advantage of the offer, booksellers will need to attend one of the Spring Forums to receive the promotion code. Until May 15, booksellers will be able to enter the code in the new member application on BookWeb.org to sign up for the free trial. Following the trial period, stores will have the option to convert their membership to regular status until the end of the dues year (January 31, 2020) for a prorated portion of the new member rate of $199.

Need a New Website?

Booksellers are also invited to sign up for IndieLite, one of ABA’s two e-commerce platforms, between now and April 30 and get the first three months free. For details, e-mail [email protected].