Winter Institute Wait List Now Forming

Registration for Winter Institute 2014 has reached capacity, and the American Booksellers Association is now taking names for a waiting list. If cancellations are received, booksellers on the list will be contacted on a first-come, first-served basis; however, there is no guarantee that space will become available. Booksellers can add their names to the wait list here.

Registered booksellers who were unable to make reservations for the ABA room block at the Winter Institute host hotel, the Westin Seattle, are encouraged to e-mail Meetings & Planning Officer Jill Perlstein to add their names to the hotel wait list.

Three of four Seattle-area bookstore tours set to take place on January 21, prior to the institute’s opening reception, are also sold out, and just a few spaces are open for the remaining half-day tour. Booksellers who have registered for the institute can express their interest in the half-day tour by sending an e-mail to [email protected]. An ABA Member Relationship Manager will follow up to confirm that space is available and collect payment. There will not be a waiting list for the store tours.

The Winter Institute, which is made possible by the generous support of Ingram Content Group, is open exclusively to Regular and Provisional ABA members and invited guests.

Thanks to Winter Institute’s sponsors, 50 scholarships will be awarded to booksellers this year. Scholarship winners will be selected from all ABA bookstore members, including Winter Institute registrants and non-registrants. Booksellers who drop off a business card at the ABA booth at any of the regional trade shows will earn an extra entry in the scholarship awards process. Booksellers at stores that have won a scholarship in the past three years are not eligible. Scholarships will cover the conference fee, up to four nights plus tax at the Westin Seattle at the special ABA rate, and transportation costs up to $400. Winners will be announced in mid-November.

For full details about the education schedule, plenary speakers, special events, and more, visit the Winter Institute 2014 event page on BookWeb.org. Information about travel discounts and airport shuttle service is also available.