Under the Umbrella Bookstore & Cafe in Salt Lake City, Utah, has won the third annual Indie Press Month display contest for its two-tiered in-store table display featuring handmade, ceiling-hung signage showing the Indie Press Month signature lightning bolts beneath black clouds. The Independent Publishers Caucus (IPC) cited the display for "championing the kind of DIY creativity and ingenuity that fuels both independent publishing and bookselling." The store receives a $500 prize.
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| Under the Umbrella's winning display | |
Under the Umbrella marketing and events coordinator Alexa said, "We are so honored to receive this award for the Indie Press Month bookstore display contest! As a queer bookstore, Under the Umbrella deeply appreciates the role that independent and small publishers have played in platforming queer stories... Our store chooses to focus on indie publishers and indie authors in order to uplift marginalized identities, even within the queer community. We see these values reflected in our customers who continue to support indie bookstores in order to get books they can't find in big-box bookstores.... Thank you again for this opportunity to create something fun and engaging for our customers near and far."
IPC is also awarding $75 co-op funds to the three finalists: Aaron's Books, Lititz, Pa.; Postcard Bookshop, Portland, Ore.; and Arvida Book Co., Tustin, Calif. Additionally, IPC will award co-op funding to an additional 20 stores--more than doubling last year's co-op program--because of the growing popularity of Indie Press Month among publishers, booksellers, and partner organizations.
The first 20 stores that tagged @indiepubs on Instagram in the month of March are set to receive $50 co-op marketing funds. Those stores include Vroman's Bookstore, Pasadena, Calif.; The Head and the Hand, Philadelphia, Pa.; Magic City Books, Tulsa, Okla.; The Winchester Book Gallery, Winchester, Va.; Schuler Books, West Bloomfield, Mich.; Norwich Bookstore, Norwich, Vt.; Quail Ridge Books, Raleigh, N.C.; Page 1 Books, Albuquerque, N.Mex.; Bookshop Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, Calif.; Square Books, Oxford, Miss.; City Lit Books, Chicago, Ill.; Watermark Books & Cafe, Wichita, Kan.; Bobzbay Books, Bloomington, Ill.; Honest Dog Books, Bayfield, Wis.; Book Soup, West Hollywood, Calif.; Flyleaf Books, Chapel Hill, N.C.; Main Street Books, Lafayette, Ind.; Tomorrow Bookstore, Indianapolis, Ind.; Prologue Bookshop, Columbus, Ohio; and Whatsit Books, Albemarle, N.C.
Partners this year included Bookshop.org, Brooklyn Public Library, EveryLibrary, Libro.fm, Ingram Content Group, Shelf Awareness, Publishers Weekly, Foreword Reviews, Open Road Integrated Media, Community of Literary Magazines & Presses (CLMP), Independent Book Publishing Association (IBPA), American Booksellers Association, Mountains & Plains Independent Booksellers Association, Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association, California Independent Booksellers Alliance, Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance, Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association, Midwest Independent Booksellers Association, New England Independent Booksellers Association, New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association, and the Independent Bookseller.