Much like in 2009, this year’s Northern California Independent Booksellers Association annual trade show held in Oakland October 14-16 picked up momentum as the event built. “The show does seem busier this year,” said Antonia Squire of Kepler’s Books. “There’s a more vibrant layout to the exhibit space, and we’re giving orders to reps, who we always love to see.”
There was a large turnout for the general membership meeting on Thursday evening, which NCIBA executive director Hut Landon led with assistance from board president Michael Barnard, membership director Heather Lyon, and treasurer John Russell. “2009 was a tough year for us financially,” Russell explained, “but we’re bouncing back.” Landon renegotiated the lease on the organization’s office space, sublet part of the office, and cut back on his assistant’s hours from full- to part-time.
Landon reported that revenue from the holiday catalogue was “well up” from the previous year. “We’re committed to not cutting back on any services,” said Landon, “and so far we haven’t had to do that at all.” Landon also told the group that several stores successfully changed ownership in the last year which prevented any member stores from closing. “We have new blood in the association now rather than closures,” he added. “Our membership is now stable.” Barnard reported that a series of road shows to indies by NCIBA board members will begin in late February. “We’ll focus on educational workshops, lunch with authors, and the sharing of ideas,” he said, and added that new stores in Oakdale, Mammoth Lakes, and Petaluma have opened in the last year.
One of the most popular panels at the show was “Merchandising Sidelines,” moderated by Rich Ciccotelli of Books Inc. and featuring Hicklebee’s Anne Seaton, Kepler’s Anne Dreeszen, and Sharon Rumpelman of Copperfield’s Books. All agreed that the great margins on gift items makes up for the loss of book inventory space. “We’re a bookstore first,” Dreeszen said, “but gifts and sidelines keep our doors open.”
Sidelines are the third largest category at Hicklebee’s. Seaton’s suggestions for the most saleable children’s items included music audios, costumes, and jewelry. “Pair these things with books in the same vein to create more sales,” she said. “You should cover many price points in a display and remember, too, that eye-level is the prime selling space,” Seaton said. “Make a statement with your sidelines, and move and change your displays frequently. When it comes to games, always ask your rep for a sample. Set one out at the cash register and play it with the customers. It’s fun for them, and chances are the parents will end up buying it.”
Rumpelman, who’s in charge of sidelines at all six Copperfield’s stores, was adamant that the floor space below a display table should always be empty. “Nothing sells from the floor,” she cautioned. She encouraged the use of risers and boxes on tables to create different heights for the displays that add a layered effect for sidelines. When setting up displays, she added, make it easy to pluck items out of a grouping and keep everything accessible to the customer. “Put stationery on shelves against the wall, and put ‘peaks and valleys’ in by varying heights and depths of the merchandise, too.”
What Dreeszen is most mindful of when buying sidelines is what’s missing from the neighborhood around Kepler’s. “If there are no travel, stationery, or games stores nearby, you can have a field day with corresponding sidelines in your store,” she explained. Dreeszen will not accept terms from a vendor that offer less than a 55% margin, and suggested that price doesn’t matter as long as there’s a perceived value to the item. “Don’t be afraid to price up,” she urged. Dreeszen also said that bookshelves “swallow gifts” and that proper displays for sidelines are essential.
Friday morning’s author breakfast featured Amy Sedaris (Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People; Grand Central), Brock Clarke (Exley, Algonquin), and Walter Mosley (The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey and When the Thrill is Gone, Riverhead). Before discussing the disparity of his two new books, one a mystery and the other a literary novel, Mosley said, “This talk should be called ‘A Tale of Two Novels.’ I’m blurry in the eyes of the marketplace, but to me language is the essence of what it is to be human.”
Sedaris, who brought the house down with her irreverent humor, explained that “attractive people have sex, and ugly people craft.” She then demonstrated a variety of crafts projects from her book, including felt stick-ons for dresses in the shapes of a firecracker, a pilgrim hat, and a rabbit, and told the audience how to make home-made twist ties and knit covers for rolls of toilet paper.
Sheryl Cotleur, buying director for Book Passage in Corte Madera, bemoaned the fact that there was “a bit more adrenalin” a year ago than she perceives for this holiday selling season. “We’re being a little more cautious,” she said. Her favorite titles for Christmas include Chess Masterpieces, by George Dean (Abrams), The Killing of Crazy Horse, by Thomas Powers (Knopf), To the End of the Land, by David Grossman (Knopf), and Mink River, by Brian Doyle (OSU Press). Connie Lin of Books Inc. recommended YA children’s books such as Matched, by Ally Condie (Dutton); Ascendant, by Diana Peterfreund (Harper Teen); and The Mockingbirds, by Daisy Whitney (Little, Brown).
The annual Debi Echlin Memorial Award for community involvement and service was presented to Lynne Almeida of Spellbinder Books in Bishop, California. In addition, the Friends of Indie Bookselling award was presented to all the book reps in Northern California. “We’re a family,” Landon said, “and that includes the reps.”
