T-Shirts and Quite a Bit More at NAIBA's Trade Show

On Sunday and Monday, October 24 - 25, 578 booksellers, 417 publishers, and a slew of authors gathered at the Borgata Hotel in Atlantic City for the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association Trade Show. "The show is always a great time for booksellers to meet new booksellers, and see old friends," said NAIBA Executive Director Eileen Dengler. "We were happy that different booksellers from the region were involved in our activities, from being panelists to being table hosts at the feast."

Among the highlights of the event, Dengler noted, were the Moveable Feast on Monday evening, which featured 24 authors. "Everyone commented on how they all (booksellers and authors) really connected this year." In addition, this year's NAIBA Reading Room was devoted to first fiction, "and people really enjoyed it -- and the two authors, Julian Rubinstein (Ballad of the Whiskey Robber, Little, Brown) and Steve Sorrentino (Luncheonette, HarperCollins/ReganBooks)."

Sunday's educational sessions were built around the theme "I am a bookseller..." As part of the day's programming, ABA CEO Avin Mark Domnitz presented his "2% Solution" seminar, which used the results of the 2003 ABACUS study of independent bookshop operations to examine the drivers of profitability and how they can be shifted to move a business to greater profits.

Other sessions included "I am a bookseller ... because of the joy of reading," "... to inspire a generation of future readers," and "... to enhance my community."

The trade show floor, which was open from 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. on Monday, featured 275 display tables, an author autographing section, and one-hour FastTrak Workshops including a Book Sense Gift Card Users Group led by ABA Marketing Director Jill Perlstein and a Book Sense.com Users Group led by BookSense.com Director Len Vlahos. ABA staff also presented Book Sense Gift Card demonstrations at the association's booth, where a number of stores were duly impressed and signed on.

Below Michael Fortney of Chester County Book & Music Company in West Chester, Pennsylvania, shares his thoughts on the coming together of booksellers at NAIBA, which "amplifies that motivation, redirects, and refines that drive [that makes us booksellers]."

By Michael W. Fortney of Chester County Book & Music Company

I went to the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association trade show and I got a bunch of T-shirts, and quite a bit more…

I approach a convention with a cautious sense of possibilities; anything can happen, especially when this breed -- known as booksellers -- convene. There are myriad reasons about why we come together, how we came to be in the business of books, what bonds us, and why we plunder on.

I'm also acutely aware of what can happen, as it is a convention, and every conventional cliche is duly implied, and intended, and bloody-well feared. I could easily be trapped within a clutch of yakking heads, with ill-conceived senses of familiarity and salesmanship… This sometimes happens. But those instances are few and far between (thankfully); this year's NAIBA trade show once again gave me, and many others, the conviction and reasoning behind what we do to make a living.

This year's theme was "I am a bookseller because…," and it seems to have come at a prescient time. We are all aware of the state of this world and its precarious existence (I write this on the eve of the election…. But I won't digress into that rant, as that's not why I was asked to write this).

Through all the seminars and meetings and meals (and oh, yes -- the drinks; we must not forget the drinks… it is a convention; some traditions must be upheld), one thing I garnered from this gathering is something that I believe will give me the fortitude and strength that I and, I imagine, others look for as we slog on through our days. There is a reasoning; there is a point. It's all in the books. We are book mongers; we are pushers for the written word. (We are all mini-Oprahs, in a way.)

We are a strange breed, we booksellers and reps and -- oh, yes -- even the authors. We are all in this together. At this NAIBA gathering, we come together to form a strange little nation, for a brief time, for the cause of selling books and making a living. We are in many ways a brother/sisterhood of the written word and have all been moved somehow to forge on with a belief in words-on-paper -- the singular voice that moves us, entertains us, and educates us, is a vitally important thing that must be passed on. Coming together amplifies that motivation, redirects, and refines that drive.

The conference began with an "Early Bird Nature Walk" at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday. I have to imagine that it went well, as I arrived a bit late (navigation not being one of my strong suits.) I assume there was nature involved, and walking, and that it all coalesced nicely.

One of the seminars that left quite an impression was "I am a bookseller ... because of the joy of reading," hosted by Joe Drabyak [of Chester County Book & Music Company] and featuring guest speakers Suzanna Strempek Shea (Shelf Life: Romance, Mystery, Drama and Other Page-Turning Adventures From a Year in a Bookstore, Beacon) and Sara Nelson (So Many Books, So Little Time, Putnam). As Shea said, "It's all about being a crazy book nut."

Both authors have great familiarity with both bookselling and writing. Their thoughts on the business and their love of reading were compelling. We discussed the role of reading in our lives, its joys and its therapeutic capacity. Reading is a passion, not simply a time-killer -- it can enrich our lives and open up new worlds. With that passion, we are able to spread those words to others, personally and professionally. That's what we do; that's how we make a living, and we should remember, always, what a noble and proud profession it is.

Each author was asked, "What is your recommendation to booksellers?" Shea responded that we must " know your customers, know your books." Nelson said we should "try to make your store as vibrant as possible. Be creative -- be different."

Therein lies the route and possibilities of the independent bookseller. We do not have the shackles of a corporation; we are, frankly, granted much more freedom in the way we run our day-to-day businesses. We can be creative, and that liberty gives us the joy we have and the fulfillment we get from making our living, selling books. Granted, there are knowledgeable and talented booksellers at the chains -- I know of many -- but the independent stores are able to form their niches as well as reach out to every prospective reader in ways the chains cannot. We must continue to grasp onto that.

The convention progressed with little difficulty, we went where we were supposed to go, saw what we were meant to see. We met authors, and it's a pleasure to see our book reps in one place. We even slept a bit. And I think we all somehow received a bit of the message we all wanted to hear, and perhaps knew, about the relevance and meaning behind what we do, and the way we do it. It all boils down to words on pages, and what we get, and do, with them.

The T-shirts are pretty good, too.