Winter Institute Already More Than Half Filled

Registration for the American Booksellers Association’s Eighth Annual Winter Institute (Wi8), which opened last Thursday, has already reached more than 290 booksellers representing over 150 member stores. Wi8 is open exclusively to ABA bookstore and provisional members and is capped at 500 booksellers with a maximum of three registrants per member business to ensure a dynamic yet intimate educational program. ABA is encouraging members who want to attend to register as soon as possible. Once the limit of 500 registrants is reached, booksellers will be added to a waiting list.

Wi8, sponsored by the Ingram Content Group, will be held at the Westin Kansas City at Crown Center in Kansas City, Missouri, from Saturday, February 23, through Monday, February 25, 2013, with an opening reception on Friday evening, February 22, at majestic Union Station, sponsored by Kansas City’s own Andrews McMeel Publishing.

 The three-day education program features more than 25 sessions on a wide range of topics, including buying and selling non-book, working with self-published authors, the ABA/Kobo eBook solution, remainder buying, effective and profitable marketing, financial operations, and more. Highlights include plenary sessions with bestselling authors Malcolm Gladwell and Daniel Pink, peer advisory groups, reps’ picks lunches, publisher meetings, and special events, including the always-popular Author Reception.

Kansas City will also be the site of the National Association of College Stores’ (NACS) 2013 CAMEX trade show, and Wi8 will feature a special trip to the show for bookseller attendees. CAMEX will introduce ABA members to a diverse mix of gift and non-book items, and as part of the ABA/NACS cooperation, booksellers who take the field trip during Wi8, or visit CAMEX on their own following the institute, will receive a $100 rebate for placing an order of any size from a vendor exhibiting at the show.

The Winter Institute will once again feature both a Consultation Station, where booksellers can meet with representatives of ABA’s business solution partners, POS vendors, World Book Night, and others, and a Galley Room offering advance copies of many titles presented at the Reps’ Picks Lunches.

The Winter Institute’s $75 non-refundable meal fee will offset some of the food costs for the event, which provides booksellers with three breakfasts, three lunches, two receptions, and lots of coffee.

The ABA group rate at the Westin Kansas City at Crown Center is $119 for singles and doubles and is available for accommodations from Tuesday, February 19, through Thursday, February 28, 2013. To receive the special rate, reservations must be made by 5:00 p.m. Central Time on Tuesday, January 22, 2013, and the special ABA group code (available on the Wi8 website) must be provided. The room block could sell out before the reservation deadline, so booksellers are encouraged to make their reservations as soon as possible. Reservations can be made by calling the Westin reservation number (800) 937-8461, or by booking online at www.starwoodmeeting.com.

Wi8’s Publisher Sponsors have contributed more than 20 bookseller scholarships. Winners will be selected from all ABA bookstore members, including Wi8 registrants and non-registrants. Booksellers who drop off a business card at the ABA booth at any of the regional trade shows can earn an extra entry in the scholarship awards process. Scholarship winners from the past three years are not eligible for Wi8 scholarships. Scholarships cover the Wi8 meal fee, up to four nights’ hotel accommodations at the Westin Kansas City, and transportation costs up to $350. Winners will be announced the week of November 12.

For complete details and to register for Winter Institute 8, visit wi8.bookweb.org. Also watch for news and updates in Bookselling This Week and follow the Twitter hashtag #Wi8.