News - Regional

The Northern California Independent Booksellers Association feels strongly about First Amendment rights. Now, to demonstrate that commitment, it is printing the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression's (ABFFE) new statement proclaiming a bookstore's support for free speech and reader privacy in color on card stock and sending it to the 92 NCIBA member booksellers who are also members of ABFFE.

The New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association (NAIBA) has announced plans that will transform its traditional fall trade show into a Booksellers Sales Conference, a move that will shift emphasis to providing booksellers with knowledge about the books they will be selling rather than on placing orders.

The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association recently completed a move to new offices. The association's new address is:

214 East 12th Avenue
Eugene, OR 97401-3245

PNBA's e-mail address and telephone and fax numbers remain unchanged.

Over the past two months, American Booksellers Association senior staff has crisscrossed the country to provide educational programming and to meet with booksellers at the nine regional association trade shows. ABA Board members were also in attendance at most of the shows to gather input from members.

At the Southern California Booksellers Association (SCBA) Authors Feast and Trade Show, held on Saturday, October 21, in Los Angeles, booksellers enjoyed the Spoken Word Radio Show Luncheon, presentation of the SCBA 2006 Book Awards, and educational programs, including ABA's "Shop Local: Forming Business Alliances in Your Community" and "Handselling: Customer Service With Results."

At its fall trade show, the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association (NCIBA) began offering its members NCIBA- and San Francisco Locally Owned Merchants Association-branded "informational coupons" that highlight the benefits of shopping locally.

The 2006 Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association (PNBA) Fall Trade Show was held from Thursday, October 12, through Saturday, October 14, at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland.

The Southern California Booksellers Association's (SCBA) Authors Feast and Trade Show will be held on Saturday, October 21, at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles. Among the day's highlights will be the 2006 Authors Feast, Spoken Word Radio Show Luncheon, and ABA educational programs "Shop Local: Forming Business Alliances in Your Community" and "Handselling: Customer Service With Results."

Spirits were buoyant as the Great Lakes Booksellers Association (GLBA) "hoisted sales" at its fall trade show at the Hyatt Regency Dearborn, in Dearborn, Michigan, from Friday, October 6, through Sunday, October 8. Booksellers attended education sessions in record numbers, publishers reported brisk business with many orders, and numerous bandanas and eye patches, a nod to GLBA's pirate theme, were noted.

The Northern California Independent Booksellers Association (NCIBA) 2006 Fall Trade Show was held on Friday, October 6, through Sunday, October 8, at the Oakland Convention Center and Oakland City Center Marriott in Oakland. This year's events included ABA and NCIBA educational programming, a keynote address by Michael Shuman, co-founder of the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE), author breakfasts, the Fifth Annual Moveable Feast, and more.

This year's Midwest Booksellers Association (MBA) Fall Trade Show was held from Thursday, September 28, through Saturday, September 30, at St. Paul, Minnesota's RiverCenter. MBA executive director Susan Walker called the show "very successful" thanks to a "conscientious effort to focus on providing opportunities to do business." More than 1,000 people attended, including 430 booksellers, representing 120 bookstores, 20 of them new members.

The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association (PNBA) Fall Trade Show will be held from Thursday, October 12, through Saturday, October 14, in Portland, Oregon, at the Oregon Convention Center. ABA COO Oren Teicher and Len Vlahos, director of ABA's education program and of BookSense.com, will be attending to present educational programming, to gather member input regarding the association's next Strategic Plan, and more.

Next week, the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association (NCIBA) and the Great Lakes Booksellers Association (GLBA) will be holding their 2006 Fall Trade shows. American Booksellers Association staff will be attending both shows to present educational programming, to gather member input regarding ABA's next Strategic Plan, and more.

Excellent educational seminars and lots of happy mingling with reps, authors, and other booksellers were reported at the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association (NAIBA) Fall Trade Show, held last weekend at King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, at the Valley Forge Convention Center. As always, the Moveable Feast was a bookseller favorite as well as NAIBA and ABA educational programming.

The New England Booksellers Association began its 33rd Annual Trade Show on Friday, September 15, at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence, Rhode Island, and ended it on Sunday, September 17, with a new name -- the New England Independent Booksellers Association (NEIBA). The name change accompanied the adoption of a new strategic plan and bylaw changes.