As the industry continues to rapidly change, the bookseller and publisher rep relationship continues to change as well. With that in mind, ABA’s upcoming Winter Institute [4]will feature a session on working with your rep to develop stronger relationships with the goal of selling more books. (See full session description below.)

In order to make this the most profitable session possible, ABA’s education staff would like to hear from booksellers, especially those who use new technology to buy and/or communicate with reps. How have these changes improved your ability to get the right book to the right customer at the right time? Besides buying, has your approach to co-op or event planning changed as well?

Please contact Lisa Winn, ABA education manager, [5] with feedback about these or other rep-related issues. And thanks for your input.

New Adventures in Book Buying: Working With Reps Near and Far

Buying is no longer only about reviewing catalogs and meeting with a sales rep every season. Whether you are seeing reps less frequently or using tools like Edelweiss interactive publisher catalogs, this session will teach you how to cultivate relationships with publishers.

This session will be moderated by Cathy Langer of Tattered Cover (Denver, CO). Panelists include Judy Crosby of Island Books (Middletown, RI); Anne DeCourcey of HarperCollins; Pam Kaufman of Random House; and Emily Crowe of The Odyssey Bookshop (Hadley, MA).