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Octavia Books Celebrates First Decade with Party, Public Radio Program
This past Saturday, New Orleans independent bookstore Octavia Books celebrated its 10-year anniversary with a party that drew a big crowd, and the announcement of a new program on local public radio station WWNO, "The Reading Life," sponsored by Octavia.
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B&N Divides Out Teen Fiction Genres
In a sign of just how popular teen fiction has become, Barnes & Noble is in the midst of rearranging its teen fiction section chain-wide this week in an effort to improve the shopping experience and boost sales. Already teen fiction is the biggest book growth category at Barnes & Noble, according to Mary Amicucci, v-p of children's books. In terms of volume, it is the second largest subject, behind adult fiction. After testing the concept at a Barnes & Noble store in Hackensack, N.J., three weeks ago, the chain pushed the go button to reorganize all its teen sections by separating out the two most popular genres—paranormal romance and fantasy and adventure—from teen fiction.
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Powell's Books Wins Visit from Suzanne Collins
Scholastic announced Thursday that Powell's Books in Portland, Ore., has been selected as the winner of the publisher's in-store display contest, earning a visit from Suzanne Collins. Participating bookstores were challenged to create a display reflecting the look and spirit of Mockingjay, the final installment of The Hunger Games trilogy.
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California Lawyers, Wisconsin Booksellers
It's been a hectic selling season for Theron O'Connor and Demaris Brinton, who've been working almost nonstop since mid-May, when the couple opened Apostle Islands Booksellers in Bayfield, Wis.
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Bookstore Sales Drop 6.5% in August
Bookstore sales fell by their largest rate of 2010 in August, declining 6.5%, to $2.29 billion, according to preliminary estimates released this morning by the U.S. Census Bureau. Driven by sales through college bookstores, August is typically one of the biggest sales months for bookstores. For the first eight months of 2010, bookstore sales were down 2.0%, to $10.79 billion. For the entire retail segment, sales rose 3.9% in August and 6.1% in the first eight months of the year.
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Great Show, Great Energy, Great Lakes
Suzy Takacs, owner of the Book Cellar in Chicago spoke for most booksellers who attended the Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association trade show held at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn, Mich., from October 8-10, when she said, "I thought it was a great show. There was a lot of positive energy, and bookseller attendance was up." As Jill Miner, owner of Saturn Booksellers in Gaylord, Mich., noted, it was a real reversal of trends in recent years.
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Excitement Returns to PNBA
An atmosphere of excitement and optimism missing in recent years permeated the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association fall trade show held in Portland, Ore. on October 7-9 at the Portland Airport Holiday Inn and conference center.
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Obituary: Carla Cohen, 74
Politics & Prose Bookstore founder and co-owner Carla Cohen died of cancer Monday morning; she was 74 years old. Cohen opened the bookstore in a small storefront on Connecticut Avenue in Washington, D.C., in 1984. Five years later Politics & Prose moved to larger quarters across the street and has continued to expand. In 1985, store manager Barbara Meade became a partner in the store, which quickly grew to be one of the country's leading independents. In 1999, Cohen and Mead were named PW's booksellers of the year.
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More than a Bookstore
Just a decade ago, bookstores could add sidelines, events, and a cafe with a decent cup of coffee, maybe beer and wine, to boost sales. But with the economy limping along and e-book sales steadily rising, that's not necessarily enough any more.
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CreateSpace and Library of Congress in POD Deal
Amazon's CreateSpace division has struck a deal with the Library of Congress to make at least 50,000 public books available at Amazon.com. LOC also reached an agreement with Amazon Europe to make tens of thousands of books in the public domain available to customers at Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, and Amazon.fr via POD.
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Borders Re-Hires Popoff, Amps Up Merchandising
Borders is bringing back Kathryn Popoff as v-p, merchandising, and has made a series of personnel changes in that department in a move that it says will help it "re-energize its focus on providing a world-class bookselling experience" as it goes into the holiday season.
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NEIBA: Smaller But Vibrant
The New England Independent Booksellers Association regional show, held in Providence, R.I., from September 30 to October 2, was like a carefully abridged book. All the important elements were there: educational sessions, meals with authors, and exhibits. It's just that the show's footprint was a lot smaller and fit on a single floor of the Rhode Island Convention Center.
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Barnes & Noble Launches PubIt
Barnes & Noble officially launched PubIt! today, its digital self-publishing platform for authors and independent publishers. Under the PubIt! model, authors are charged no startup fee and will receive a royalty that ranges from 40% to 65%, depending on the price of the e-book (or other digital content).
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Booksellers Hear Details of the Much-Delayed Google Editions
When Google Editions goes live, which should be no later than the end of the year, the Web sites of booksellers who participate in ABA's IndieCommerce will go live with it. But independents won't be Google's only partners; ABA could be selling e-books alongside Wal-Mart and Barnes & Noble. Those were among the revelations at the New England Independent Booksellers Association fall conference held last week in Providence, R.I.
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After Proxy Win, More Challenges for B&N
While the re-election of Len Riggio to the Barnes & Noble board, along with David Wilson and David Golden, put an end to the proxy fight started by the retailer's largest outside shareholder, Ron Burkle, the long-term fate of the country's largest bookseller remains uncertain.
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An Ode to Autumn Regionals
As September gives way to October, three of nine regional bookseller associations have held their annual fall trade shows. As usual, booksellers and publishers managed to generate lots of excitement for the holiday books, even as traditional bricks-and-mortar stores face unprecedented challenges from digital books.
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Xerox Expands Collaboration with Espresso
Beginning in the first quarter of 2011, Xerox will move into print-on-demand publishing in a bigger way through an expanded relationship with On Demand Books, creator of the Espresso Book Machine. While the Xerox 4112 will continue to serve as printer for the EBM, the Fortune 500 company will now market, sell, lease, and service the rechristened machine, co-branded as the Espresso Book Machine, a Xerox Solution.
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Borders to Open Pop-Up Stores; Adds Wireless Kobo Reader
After closing hundreds of stores over the last year, Borders Group announced Tuesday morning that it is jumping on one of retailing's hottest trends—pop-up stores. Borders will open 25 seasonal Borders Express stores nationwide beginning October 25 and will operate them through January 31.
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B&N Shareholders Reelect Riggio; Reject Burkle
Barnes & Noble shareholders reelected B&N chairman Leonard Riggio and his slate to the board of the directors, rejecting financier Ron Burkle's efforts to gain seats on the board. Shareholders also rejected a proposal put forth by Burkle's Yucaipa Company to amend the poison pill "anti-takeover" provisions in the stockholder rights agreement.
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Booksellers Mix it Up at Mountains & Plains
A combination of four events seems to have contributed to this year's Mountains & Plains Independent Booksellers Association's trade show in Denver being simultaneously an exuberant celebration of the ties binding together this diverse but close-knit community of booksellers, and a sober time for serious reflection upon the mission of the 35-year-old organization.
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