Tomorrow is America Unchained Day, the annual campaign organized by the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA) to promote locally-owned businesses nationwide. Indie bookstores, as well as organizations like the Independent Booksellers of New York City, will join forces with other businesses in their communities to celebrate the benefits of shopping locally.
"Our personal choice to spend our money with independent businesses helps create better paying jobs, opportunity for local economic development, and keeps money circulating in the local economy for the benefit of every citizen," said Jeff Milchen, AMIBA co-founder. "America's independent businesses live or die by providing real goods and services, not accounting trickery--they’re the foundation of a more vital and sustainable economy for our communities."
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The mayor of Rutland, Vt., has officially declared today a "plastic-bag-free" day for downtown retailers. According to the Herald, "When you reach the checkout line on Friday, Sustainable Rutland would
like you to stop and think before taking that plastic bag. The group,
an initiative of the Creative Economy, is challenging merchants and
customers alike to choose reusable instead of paper or plastic, a small
adjustment that could eventually have a major impact on the green
movement."
"Localism is really what our community should be all about," said Book King bookstore's owner Steve
Eddy, who originally came up with the idea for the "Rutland-themed,
locally designed and printed organic cotton bags" that are a key
component of today's Bag the Bag Challenge.
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In reporting that Bookstop, Austin, Tex., will close at the end of the year, the American-Statesman called the bookstore, which was sold to Barnes & Noble in 1989 and served as a prototype for chain superstores, "a one-time hotbed of local literary activity." But David Deason, v-p of development for B&N, observed that "the lease has come to the end of its term, and we were unsuccessful in negotiating a new lease term at rents that would allow the store to be financially successful."
The American-Statesman used the closing announcement to take a reading of the economic climate for other bookshops in the city during this economic downturn. Susan Post, owner of BookWoman, commented, "I would say everything is down. It was an awful summer for everyone."
BookPeople's owner Steve Bercu said recent sales were slightly down, "but we're pretty much on track for the year. We are, fortunately, a locally owned business, and people in Austin understand the value of shopping at locally owned businesses."
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IndieBound.org has introduced a new E-Card feature. According to Bookselling this Week, "Visitors to IndieBound.org can now send electronic greetings featuring one of four animations based on IndieBound Holiday designs. Anyone can create and send an E-Card, but community members
can also include a link to their Wish List--a nice hint for the holidays!
Each card can include a custom greeting as well as a personal message."
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BTW also reported that the Emerging Leaders Council has named the recipients of Ingram scholarships to the ABA's Fourth Annual Winter Institute in Salt Lake City, Utah, January 29-February 1. The winners are:
- Emily Adams, Third Place Books, Lake Forest Park, Wash.
- Joe Eichman, Tattered Cover Book Store, Denver, Colo.
- Alison Haimson, Carnegie Mellon University Bookstore, Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Rich Rennicks, Malaprop's Bookstore/Café, Asheville, N.C.
- Jess Ridout, Books Inc., Burlingame, Calif.
- Kate Robinson, Brookline Booksmith, Brookline, Mass.
"There's no more essential element to our industry than the independent bookseller," said Dan Sheehan, v-p of sales for Ingram Book Company/Ingram Publisher Services. "For young booksellers who are passionate about their career path, the teaching and mentoring opportunities of [the Winter Institute] can truly be life-changing. Emerging Leaders is dedicated to supporting the finest talents at the early stage of their career and, quite frankly, we wanted to help."
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Congratulations to the student employees of Columbia University Library, who won this year's Pimp my Bookcart contest, sponsored by Unshelved.com and Smith System. Nearly 100 submissions came from schools, libraries, a bookstore and a jail. To see the highly amusing winners and runners up, click here.
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The New York Times reported that many online retailers are waging price wars as the holiday season approaches, "trying to navigate what is shaping up to be the first truly dreary holiday shopping season ever on the Web. . . . Free shipping is becoming a painful imperative for all e-commerce sites."
Noting that "E-commerce giants like Amazon.com . . . can easily absorb shipping costs," the Times added that for many vendors that isn't a realistic option. As an example, it was noted that "Powell's Books, a bookstore in Portland, Ore. with a site that competes for customers with Amazon.com, offers free shipping on orders over $50."
"In our business model, we could not afford to give free shipping on every package. It just would not work," said Dave Weich, Powell's director of marketing.
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Boulder Book Store, Boulder, Colo., will hold its sixth annual donation of 20,000 books to Boulder County teachers this week. The Daily Camera noted that David Bolduc, the bookshop's owner, "expects hundreds of educators to partake in the event, filling boxes with books to add to school libraries, use in classrooms, and even give to students."
"[Books] make knowledge more accessible," he said. "And it's not some exclusive thing. For many [students], it's the first book in their household. And it's important to have books that are special and meaningful to you."
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A list making the Internet rounds this week names dozens of major retailers that are closing stores across the U.S., yet still selling gift cards during the holiday season. While FOX23-News, Albany, N.Y., questioneded the viral e-mail's accuracy, Susan Novotny, owner of the Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza, offered the most practical last word on the subject.
FOX-23 suggested that "independent stores, like the Book House [of] Stuyvesant Plaza, have been a part of the community for years and don't plan on leaving anytime soon."
"The gift cards are always going to be good here," said Novotny. "You can always track me down and I'm the owner. It's as simple as that."
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Shoppers in the Minneapolis area will be buying more books this holiday season, according to a survey conducted by the University of St. Thomas. WCCO-TV reported that the generally downward shift in spending "should come as good news to owners of area book stores. Shoppers said they'll be giving more books this holiday season, as well as clothing, gift certificates and gifts of cash."
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Vanity Fair's Society & Style blog covered the National Book Award After Party--sponsored by Morgan Entrekin of Grove/Atlantic and Harvey Weinstein of Weinstein Books--at Socialista, where "New York’s young intelligentsia did their best to prove that books are not dead." VF also observed that authors Nick McDonnell and Joshua Ferris "welcomed editorial assistants, bloggers, and literary buffs, who eventually filled both floors of the venue."
"Morgan's idea was simply to get the younger arts crowd out to celebrate books--stretch the party beyond those invited to the actual ceremony," said Claire Howorth, an event co-host and VF staff member. "And to have a little (maybe too much) fun. Especially in this climate that's been so tough on publishing.”
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Effective December 1, Corinne Helman will become v-p of digital publishing and business development at HarperCollins Children's Books, a new position, where she will be responsible for "developing online revenue strategies and a range of new digital opportunities that encompass product development, marketing and sales for current successful projects and newly-created, wholly-owned intellectual property. In addition, she will recommend partnerships and investment opportunities that augment the Group's current and future business."
Most recently she was v-p of business development for Scholastic Trade and earlier was v-p of business development at Primedia.
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Obituary note: In today's New York Times, Donald Finkel, who died last week at the age of 79, is praised as "a noted American poet whose work teemed with curious juxtapositions, which in their unorthodoxy helped illuminate the function of poetry itself."