Winter Institute Registrants Encompass Booksellers Nationwide

The American Booksellers Association has released preliminary registration figures for its inaugural Winter Institute to be held in Long Beach, California, on Thursday, January 26, and on Friday, January 27.

Five weeks before the event, 260 booksellers, representing approximately 170 stores, are registered for the comprehensive program, which will feature more than 22 education sessions, presented by a roster of notable independent booksellers, as well as ABA staff and representatives from Book Sense Publisher Partners. Registrants include five Provisional members of ABA, who are preparing to open bookstores.

Booksellers are coming from 44 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and Bermuda, and they include members of nine regional associations: Great Lakes, Midwest, Mountains & Plains, New Atlantic Independent, New England, Northern California Independent, Pacific Northwest, Southeast, and Southern California booksellers associations.

Among the registrants are 37 booksellers who are the recipients of scholarships (for hotel and travel expenses) supported by ABA or one of 11 Book Sense Publisher Partners. This figure also includes two booksellers affected by this year's hurricanes in the Gulf Coast -- Michele Lewis of the Afro American Book Stop in New Orleans and Barbara Lynn Roberts of Calico's House of Books in Diamondhead, Mississippi -- who are attending on scholarships supported by the Bookseller Relief Fund.

Participating in the Winter Institute will be members of the ABA Board and the Booksellers Advisory Council, which offers the association guidance on a broad range of issues important to independent booksellers.

Booksellers can still register for the Winter Institute, which is free to owners and staff of ABA member bookstores. At www.bookweb.org/education/institute/, booksellers will find an electronic registration form, information about the host hotel, Long Beach Hilton, and complete program information.

Rooms at the Hilton at a special rate of $112 per night for Institute participants are currently sold out for Wednesday night, January 25, and they are expected to very soon sell out for Friday night as well. All reservations are booked on a first-come, first-served basis.

Discounted room rates at the Long Beach Hilton are made possible by support from BookExpo America, Baker & Taylor, Ingram Book Group, and publisher partners HarperCollins, Hyperion, Penguin Group for Young Readers, Perseus Books Group, Random House, Scholastic, Time Warner Book Group, and Workman.