Barnes & Noble Courts Amazon Affiliates

With Amazon determined to avoid collecting sales tax in as many states as possible for as long as possible, Barnes & Noble issued an open letter to Amazon affiliates urging them to sign on to its affiliate program, which it says has over 13,000 members.

GLiBA and MBA to Hold Joint Meeting

Great Lakes Booksellers Association executive director Deb Leonard and Midwest Booksellers Association executive director Carrie Obry may still be learning the essentials of their new positions, but they're not wasting any time mixing things up. On March 19, MBA and GLiBA will hold a joint spring meeting in Milwaukee. It's actually, in Leonard's words, a "triple meet," as the ABA is participating as well, holding an educational session for booksellers on the IndieCommerce program, as well as an open forum for discussion of industry issues.

Bookmarc: Bookstore as Luxury Brand

Bookstores may be many things, but fashionable isn’t usually one of them. That could change now that designer Marc Jacobs has put his imprimatur on Bookmarc stores on both coasts and added branded Bookmarc sections to a handful of MJ stores from Provincetown, Mass., to San Francisco, as well as in London, Paris, and Milan. He’s also planning to open two more stand-alone Bookmarcs in Washington, D.C., and Shanghai.

Waiting for Borders

As another week comes to a close, the situation at Borders remains status quo--at least for the moment. Ingram continues to be the chain's lifeline to the publishers, continuing to ship books while few publishers are. There was no movement among publisher in accepting Borders proposal to exchange missed payments for notes, and publishers, like the rest of the industry, are waiting for the next shoe to drop.

Two NE Booksellers Launch Network of Independents

Two long-time independents, Susan Novotny, owner of the Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza in Albany, N.Y., and David Didriksen, owner of Willow Books in Acton, Mass., are taking advantage of the shrinking footprint of chain retailers by launching Bookstore Solutions Management, or BS Management as it is affectionately known. The idea is to open a network of independent bookstores in spaces previously occupied by chain bookstores that had become community destinations.

Powell’s Lays Off 31 Workers

In a sign that no bricks-and-mortar bookstore, even one with a strong online presence, is immune from today's economic conditions, 40-year-old Powell’s Books in Portland laid off 31 employees yesterday.

Sales Rise, Earnings Fall at Indigo

Led by Kobo e-readers and other nonbook items, sales at Indigo Books & Music rose 14%, to C$387.6 million, in the third quarter ended January 1. Profit in the quarter fell to C$30.2 million from C$34.5 million. Like Amazon with the Kindle and Barnes & Noble with Nook, Indigo said that Kobo e-readers were the "hottest items in our stores over the holidays." Gifts and toys also sold well and in a statement Indigo CEO Heather Reisman said the performance of those categories, "reinforced our decision to continue expanding these categories."

Half Price Books Goes with Monsoon

Many booksellers struggle to find the right online presence, none more so perhaps than multi-store independents. A decade ago, Half Price Books in Dallas experimented with putting its entire inventory online. Later it abandoned that model and added an Amazon buy button to its site. Now HPB, which specializes in used and bargain titles, is partnering with Monsoon Commerce Solutions and Alibris to offer more than 120 million items from independent sellers. It seems to be working.

Book Nook to Open in Ipswich

River's Edge in Ipswich, Mass., on Boston’s North Shore, may not be the first gift shop to add a shelf of books, but it could be the only one to expand it into an entire bookstore, albeit a small one. In mid-April, Paul Allen-Webber, owner of the 13-year-old store, will close his neighboring Ipswich Party Shop and open Book Nook at River's Edge in the 500 sq. ft. space it occupied.

New Indie Opens in Iowa

After months of wondering what new business would be moving into a 1,300-square-foot downtown retail space where renovations, shrouded in secrecy, were being completed, the residents of Decorah, Iowa, discovered February 4 that an independent bookstore will open there by mid-February. Kate Rattenborg, the owner of Dragonfly Books, unveiled her new business venture Friday evening at a black-tie soiree/50th birthday party with about 130 in attendance. A grand opening celebration is scheduled for March 19.

Freemium Boosts e-Book Sales for F+W

"I never thought I’d say the word 'freemium,'" says Kate Rados, group marketing director for F+W Media. But after launching a successful three-day free e-book campaign for Eric Lamet’s Holocaust memoir A Child al Confino (Adams Media)late last month to mark Holocaust Remembrance Day, she’s not only saying the "f" word but planning a new one for Valentine's Day, Pride and Prejudice: The Wild and Wanton Edition (Adams Media). "It's a different genre and timing," she says. "We'll see how it affects the other Wild and Wanton Edition, Wuthering Heights."

Selling Academic African-American Titles to a General Reader

Looking to expand the readership of its African-American History series to a general audience, scholarly publisher Rowman & Littlefield is editing the titles for accessibility and targeting trade reviewers, teachers, and retailers with galleys, flyers, and direct mail. The house is also working to offer e-book editions for all of its frontlist titles, including African-American titles.

The Heart of the Matter

As memories fade of the strong 2010 holiday season that finished up a flat year, the bookstore scene across the Midwest continues to shift, with stores opening and closing. According to the Midwest Booksellers Association, whose membership is located in nine states, 39 MBA stores closed between 2006 and 2010, while 28 stores opened.

Kids Running the Store

From time to time bookstore owners are forced to turn to their kids for help, especially during the holidays, when there never seem to be enough booksellers. But last fall a group of teens and tweens contributed their time and expertise without being asked.

Borders Faces Delisting and Other Signs of Distress

Borders said late Friday that it has been notified by the New York Stock Exchange that it is not in compliance with the requirement that a company's stock trade for a minimum of $1 per share over a consecutive 30 day trading period. The chain's stock closed at 39 cents on Friday. The company has six months to return to compliance or face delisting from the NYSE. During that period, Borders' shares can be still be traded on the exchange, provided it meets all other requirements.

ABA Partners with Monsoon

The American Booksellers Association continues to expand its strategic partnerships. Wednesday it announced a new relationship with Monsoon Commerce Solutions that will enable independent booksellers to list their used inventory in more than a dozen MCS online marketplaces at a reduced fee. Among the Web sites MCS supports are: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and eBay.

Borders Lumbers Toward Bankruptcy

With Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal both reporting that Borders could file for bankruptcy next week, publishers have started speculating about why the process will take that long. There has been little movement in publishers’ negative perception of Borders’s financial proposal, and although Borders is believed to be in a final round of negotiations, one large publisher said the communication with Borders "is terrible."

One publisher speculated that they delay is due to Borders getting its debtor-in-possession financing in place. The so-called DIP provides companies with the necessary cash to operate under Chapter 11. Borders must also make sure publishers will give them credit after the Chapter 11 filing, something that a publisher said “is no given.”

Mystery Bookstore Leaves L.A. With Long Goodbye

A motley overflow crowd of celebrity mystery writers and loyal customers gathered at the Mystery Bookstore in Los Angeles last night to mourn the closing of the beloved indie that served the community for over 20 years. Bestselling author Robert Crais stood amidst hundreds of well-wishers and commented on the loss of the last independent bookstore in the center of the city.

Leahy Reintroduces Bill to Restore Reader Privacy Protections

One month before controversial portions of the USA Patriot Act are set to expire, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) last week reintroduced a reauthorization bill that would restore protections for reader privacy that were eliminated by the Act in 2001.

BAM Moves Into Used Books

Last September, Books-a-Million quietly made a big move into the used books business with 2nd & Charles, a 40,000-square-foot test store located just outside the company's hometown of Birmingham, Ala., stocked almost exclusively with used merchandise (including CDs, DVDs, video games, and vinyl, as well as books).