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Finding a Role in the Middle
Although some publishers and distributors were in the digital space long before Amazon introduced the Kindle in November 2007, the then-$399 device offering seamless downloads of relatively inexpensive digital books was definitely the game changer. In the intervening five years, not only have devices and formats morphed and multiplied—and with them challenges, not least of which is how many ISBNs a single e-book needs—but new retail players have continued to emerge. Zola Books, which is still in beta, will begin selling later this year; Kobo is about to relaunch in the U.S. with independent booksellers; and even Ingram is working on an e-book platform (no date has been set yet).
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ABA Readies “Thanks for Shopping Indie”
The program will enable member stores to receive a promotional discount on 10 titles from 20 publishers.
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‘Casual Vacancy’ and the State of Big (Print) Debuts
After months of hype, the first adult novel from J.K. Rowling debuted with the third biggest print opening of 2012. At outlets tracked by Nielsen BookScan, The Casual Vacancy sold 156,679 copies in its first week—enough to place it behind only No Easy Day by Mark Owen (254,046 copies) and Fifty Shades Darker (170,628 copies) for this year’s biggest debut. Across all formats, publisher Little, Brown said Rowling’s book sold approximately 375,000 copies in its first six days on sale.
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What's Selling at Dolly's Bookstore
Sue Fassett, manager of Dolly's Bookstore in Park City, Utah, talks about which children's books are moving well at her store this fall.
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Diesel Bookstore Plans 4th California Location in Spring 2013
With stores already established in Malibu, Brentwood, and Oakland, Diesel co-owner John Evans has announced a fourth location that will open in Larkspur, California in the spring of 2013.
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B&N, Microsoft Complete Deal to Create Nook Media
Barnes & Noble and Microsoft have finalized their partnership agreement that has created Nook Media, a B&N subsidiary in which Microsoft will hold a 17.6% stake.
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MPIBA To Launch Mentor Program
Established bookstores will be enlisted to help out newer ventures.
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B&N Removing Marshall Title
Barnes & Noble has told any of its stores that have stocked Penny Marshall’s My Mother Was Nuts to remove the title from shelves.
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'High Energy' at New Atlantic Booksellers Conference
This year’s New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association Fall Conference focused on getting noticed.
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Glitches Aside, B&N Insists It Is Not Carrying Amazon Titles
After PW reported that Barnes & Noble would not be carrying books from Amazon Publishing in its stores, a report has surfaced that the retailer seems to be selling titles from the publishing imprint.
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News Briefs: Week of October 1, 2012
New Tablets, Overseas Expansion for B&N and more
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New Report Sees Gradual Decline in Book Spending
Given the state of flux in the book world, it can be dangerous to predict industry sales trends, but the private investment banking firm Veronis Suhler Stevenson has done just that in its latest annual report, the “VSS Communications Industry Forecast (2012–16).”
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This Week's Bestsellers: October 1, 2012
Commentary and analysis on this week's PW Bestsellers lists.
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Three Indies Rise from Atlantic Books Ashes
When the Atlantic Books chain closed late last year, it left a particularly large hole that's starting to be filled with the opening of Acorn Books in Dover, Del.
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SCB Distributors Creates Catalog App
As publishers and wholesalers look for new ways to communicate the excitement behind their books, SCB Distributors is testing iPhone and iPad-compatible apps to present their lists.
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Libreria Martinez Books and Art Gallery Finds New Home at Chapman University
Latino bookseller Rueben Martinez, who won a MacArthur "genius grant" in 2004, partners with Chapman University in Orange County to provide books and educational outreach to students in a unique arrangement.
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This Week's Bestsellers: September 10-16, 2012
Commentary and analysis on this week's PW Bestsellers lists.
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The Weekly Scorecard: Tracking Print Book Sales for the Week Ending September 16, 2012
PW's look at weekly sales of print books based on numbers from Nielsen BookScan.
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Mountains & Plains Booksellers, Reps Share Positive Vibes in Denver
Approximately 400 booksellers descended upon the Renaissance Hotel in northeast Denver Sept. 20-22 for the Mountains & Plains Independent Booksellers Association's annual trade show, which all agreed was a great success.
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Price Transparency as Sales Strategy
Over the past few semesters the University of Kansas Bookstore and a growing number of independent college stores have begun taking advantage of the way students comparison shop for textbooks by sharing their competitors’ prices on their own store’s Web sites and/or pricing books dynamically using that data. “You’d have to be extremely naïve to think students aren’t pasting ISBNs [for course books] on their favorite sites, like Chegg and Amazon,” said James Rourke, assistant director of the University of Kansas Bookstore in Lawrence, Kans. While some stores list pricing for their two biggest competitors, Amazon and Half, others post as many as 10 alternatives plus availability at the local library.
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