After rumors at BookExpo America last month that things would be different next year, BEA event director Steve Rosato has confirmed that in 2015 the trade portion of the show will be slightly truncated, while the consumer portion is expanding.
On his blog, The Bean, Rosato announced that the 2015 BEA will begin at 1 p.m. on Wednesday May 27 and run through 5 p.m. on Friday May 29. The trade show will then be followed by two full days of BookCon on Saturday and Sunday, May 30 and 31.
The trade show will be more compact, wrote Rosato, adding, “there is a tremendous [amount] of efficiency by having BookCon follow BEA, but they are really separate things. That will also allow the companies vested in BookCon to staff properly and save on T&E by reducing some personnel.” Rosato commented on complaints about the lines and crowding at BookCon and promised that all issues will be addressed to make BookCon 2015 “a safe and pleasant experience.”
In response to critics who called BookCon is a “big money grab,” Rosato noted it it barely broke even. The point is to give books a platform in pop culture, he stated. Acknowledging the complaints of those who had enjoyed the Power Reader experience, Rosato promised to find a way to “blend the events for this distinct group without upsetting the balance for BEA’s trade activity.”
