Harvard Book Store, Cambridge, Mass., has won Publishers Weekly's Bookseller of the Year award. The annual award is chosen by a panel of industry professionals as well as the previous year's Rep of the Year, who in this case is Peg O'Donnell of Publishers Group West.
Criteria for the award include clarity in mission and vision; expertise in buying for its target markets; innovation; successful events; and business efficiency. This year 25 bookstores were nominated for the award.
A landmark literary and scholarly bookstore that was founded in 1932 by Mark Kramer, Harvard Book Store is owned by his son Frank Kramer. A key employee, of course, is Carole Horne. In a college town that once had many bookstores, Harvard Book Store has not only survived but thrived, in part by increasing its focus on customer relationships. A feature about Harvard Book Store will appear in the April 8 pre-BEA issue of PW.
