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The Book Stall, PW's Bookstore of the Year, is Up for Sale
Roberta Rubin, the owner of The Book Stall at Chestnut Court, a fixture on the Chicagoland bookselling scene, and PW's 2012 Bookstore of the Year, wants to sell.
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National Retail Federation Asks Senate to Act on Tax Fairness
The National Retail Federation Wednesday urged a Senate committee examining federal tax reform to support legislation that would require Internet retailers to collect sales tax the same as local merchants.
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Industry Issues Aplenty at Last ABA Forum
The DoJ, e-books, showrooming, the credit squeeze, and tax fairness were front and center at the last of this spring's 12 ABA regional bookseller gatherings.
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Brookline Booksmith Buys Globe Corner
Globe Corner Bookstore is back in a smaller format as part of Brookline Booksmith. The Brookline, Mass., store purchased the Globe Corner trade names, trademarks, and Web site.
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Skylight Books Will Temporarily Close to Participate in May Day “General Strike”
Skylight Books in Los Angeles, long a bastion of progressive ideas, will close from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on May 1 so that its staff may travel downtown to the planned Occupy L.A. activities during a proposed General Strike.
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Author Teams with Kickstarter, McNally Jackson for New Title
Children’s author Kate Milford set up a Kickstarter page to raise money to self-publish a novella with McNally Jackson to coincide with the release of her second book from Clarion.
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Finding the Right Role for Trade Paperbacks
The trade paperback format lost some ground to e-books through the first nine months of 2011, according to Bowker Market Research, but it remained the most popular print category. Still, the question being asked is what consumer segment the trade paperback is serving in a time when e-books often capture readers looking for the things paperbacks used to offer: a lower price point and a light-weight alternative to hardcovers. Although publishers remain committed to the format, many agents say the biggest shift, and the most damning, has been the demise of Borders. A number of agents PW spoke to said that with Borders gone—all agreed that one of the things Borders did best was sell literary fiction in trade paperback—the barriers to bringing a title out in trade paperback are higher than ever.
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What Should Bookstores Stock in a Digital Age?
Nothing has challenged bricks-and-mortar bookstores to reconsider their physical space and what they carry more than the recession and the rise of e-books. Recently, two independents announced that they will reduce their space. Third Street Books in McMinnville, Ore., which expanded in 2006, is in the process of contracting and subletting a portion of its store, while Bunch of Grapes in Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., is moving across the street to a 3,300-sq.-ft. location. It currently has 5,000 sq. ft.
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Book Sales Fell 5% at Hastings
Book sales fell 5% at Hastings Entertainment for the year ended January 31, dropping to about $109 million. Although books constituted the same percentage of total revenue in the year as in 2010, 22%, company sales fell to $496 million from $521 million.
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Puffer Retires; Laties Replaces
Beth Puffer had originally planned to retire as manager of Bank Street Bookstore, part of Bank Street College in New York City, at the end of 2011, but agreed to stay on until April 27 to train her replacement. Andy Laties is already gearing up to assume Puffer's responsibilities.
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Book Sales Fell 9% at Books-A-Million in 2011
Sales of books and magazines fell 9.2% at Books-A-Million, to $345 million, in the fiscal year ended January 28.
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Bookstore Sales Declined 4.1% in February
Bookstore sales fell 4.1% in February, to just over $1 billion, according to preliminary estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau.
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New Bookstore to Open in Space Vacated by Keillor's Common Good
Sue Zumberge, the manager for five years for Garrison Keillor's St. Paul, Minn. bookstore, Common Good Books, is opening her own bookstore in the space recently vacated by Common Good.
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NYU Students Stepped Up Early
When World Book Night organizers expanded the book-giving event from the U.K. to the U.S. for 2012 they knew that generating buzz—and understanding—about a program with the goal of giving away 500,000 copies of 30 titles on a single day would be a challenge, given the limited budget available. So when the newly appointed WBN US executive director Carl Lennertz was approached by Andrea Chambers, director of NYU’s Center for Publishing, and offered the help of NYU’s masters in publishing students to publicize the event, it was a no-brainer. “I wept in gratitude,” Lennertz quipped.
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How to Give Away 500,000 Books
When looking at an effort with the scale of World Book Night U.S.—half a million books will be given away to strangers across all 50 states on April 23—it’s helpful to consider some numbers: 25,000 “givers” have volunteered to give away their allotment of books to people, many of whom they’ve never met, in their communities (5,800 towns and cities will participate); 2,200 bookstores and libraries will serve as central hubs, where givers are picking up the books; and 750 of those bookstores and libraries are holding pre-WBN receptions.
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Nebraska's Disclosure Statement Approved
As expected Nebraska Book Company’s Disclosure Statement for its Third Amended Plan of Reorganization was approved, which moves it closer to emerging from bankruptcy.
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St. Mark's Bookshop Needs More Financial Help
Even though 44,000 people signed a petition to save St. Mark's Bookshop last fall and the New York City bookstore got a one-year rent reduction, it is still in trouble.
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Regionals Contact Congressional Leaders about DoJ Investigation
Regional associations want to keep the pressure on the DoJ through a bookseller letter-writing campaign to congressional leaders.
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Newbury Comics: ‘It’s Always Morph or Die’
As digital book sales continue to gain traction, the comparison between bookstores and record stores has gotten closer. While the number of independent record stores has fallen dramatically over the years, Boston's Newbury Comics is bucking the trend.
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Booksellers Disappointed By Google Decision to Drop Indies
Surprised by Google's announcement that it is dropping its indie partners, booksellers make plans for an alternative e-book solution.
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