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indie bookstore entrepreneur
IDEAS, INSPIRATION, BEST PRACTICES
summer 2017
In this Issue
Reviving Civility
"Getting Behind" a Book -Sell-Through Strategies with a
Holistic Approach
Tuck It! Finding Room forSeating
Show & Sell
Improving Staff Wages
Fabulous Finds
Ready to Enhance Your Store'sSense of Place?
START TRAINING NOWOnline training for
Managing Today's Bookstore
delegate. promote.
develop.
Managing Today'sBookstore
The industry's only
Bookstores: a force for good
Bookstores are called "sanctuaries" for good reason... people need safe spaces to feel better aboutthemselves and our world.
Bookstores have alsobeen agents for change... for the better.
In this issue, let's explorethe ways we can furtherdevelop - and promote -our peaceful sense ofplace and the ways thestore can help promptcivility, respect, andcompassion.
Have a great summer!
change begins withintention.
Reviving Civility
two movements help affect change
There are efforts already spreading across the
comprehensiveprofessional developmentprogram for booksellers
new to management
When you promote a
bookseller to a managementrole or hire a manager fromoutside the book industry,your new manager needs athorough understanding ofthe job.
With this 12 module self-study program, those new tomanagement will:
Learn the job! Gain the bigpicture of the responsibilitiesand authority levels of themanager's role
Dive into the detail withstrategies for managingbookstore operations, frombuying and receiving toinventory management andvendor returns
Learn bookstore metricsand how to interpretfinancial reports to measureproductivity and profitability
Hire, train, schedule, andlead staff to create a positivework environment
Receive an overview ofways to grow the business
country and the globe that you can support byincorporating them in your blogs, events, displays,and staff discussions ....
Both are non-partisan and inclusive.
The lack of respect and civility has been disturbingto most everyone as hateful language has turned toviolence here and around the globe.Bestselling authorKaren Armstrong (AHistory of God, TheBattle for God, HolyWar, Islam, Buddha,and The GreatTransformation -and memoirs,Through the NarrowGate and The SpiralStaircase) won the 2008 TED Prize for her TED Talk,a wish for leaders to push for a more compassionateway of living.
The effort resulted in a carefully crafted Charter forCompassion, which more than 340 cities aroundthe world have adopted.
Individuals, groups, businesses ... anyone canreview and sign the Charter for Compassion here.Invite customers to sign the charter; some will beinspired to take the charter to your local officialsand their schools and organizations.
Let's engage local officials, candidates for politicaloffices, and the local media ...
The National Institute for Civil Discourse, an effortof the University of Arizona, with the mission ofsupporting civility on multiple levels has as itsgoals:
To elect officials capable of working to solve thebig issues facing our country
A public that demands civil discourse as well as
through marketing andmerchandising
Get tools to help youprioritize work and giveattention to the most criticalaspects of the job
Receive customizable fileslike an employee handbook,bookstore financialmanagement dashboard,employment applications,buying budget spreadsheetand much, much more.
Why "wing it" when you canlearn the best practices of
retail management forbookstores.
Get started now.
Training for new
bookstore owners
Owning a BookstoreOnline Training &Workshop Retreat
August 27-30, 2017Nashville, TN
government that works in the best interests of thecountry as a whole
A media that informs citizens in a fair andresponsible way
Revive Civility invites individuals, politicalcandidates, and members of the media toparticipate. The Institute provides tools forAmericans to take solution-oriented actions that willhelp restore civility in our public elections.
considered thought, respectful conversation:booksellers as champions of civility.
"getting behind" a book
a model of holistic bookselling
We receive BookPeople's electronic newsletter andalways enjoy seeing what is happening at thisspirited, engaged bookstore. In a recent issue, wecaught this feature, designed to promote anupcoming book and author they respect.
What's happening in this one feature:a chunky section of the newsletter is devoted to a
new releasethe colorful headline spotlights the author's namethe photos speak volumes... the staff feels
passionately about this bookthe brief caption ties the piece to the upcoming
author appearancea linked box takes you to the event detailsyou can bet there's a big display in a focal point
display in the bookstore
This newsletter feature shows how BookPeoplecoordinated buying, marketing, hand-selling
and merchandising.
Learn. Plan. Do.
Share this
newsletter!
This free newsletter isavailable to anybookseller, bookstorevendor, or prospectivebookstore owner ... passalong the links!
Register here to receivethis free newsletter.
Newsletter archives.
Paz Blog
You'll find more ideas,strategies, inspiration andreflections about successin bookselling by readingthe Paz & Associates blog.
What's on your mind?
From wanting to becomemore efficient andeffective to updating the
combine sell-through strategies to get behindyour favorite authors & books.
Tuck it!
finding room for customer seating
When people learn about our work with indiebookstores, they usually mention two things abouttheir favorite stores that they truly value: shelf-talkers and seating.
Yet space can make this challenging.
Ottomansare aperfectsolution.
You cantuck themunder a
look and feel of the store... and finding a newowner when it's time tobegin your next chapter,booksellers count on us,knowing we are devotedto supporting strong andstable, creative andvibrant indie bookstores.
Your first 20 minuteconsultation is free, sogive us a call at904.277.2664. We'd loveto work with you!
Warm regards,
Mark & Donna Paz Kaufman
The Bookstore Training Group ofPaz & Associates
table when not in use and customers can pull themout when they're ready to sit.
Ottomans come in lots of fun colors and fabrics, areavailable in a variety of sizes, and are affordable.
Frame-style chairsare also easy totuck beside atable.
They're light andeasy to move ...and can be usedfor event seating.
You'll find ladder-back or simpleframe chairs atflea markets andgarage sales.Don't like thefinish? Just give ita coat of paint to match your store's colors.
give customers places to sitwhile they rest, browse, and decide
what to read next.
Show & Sell
promoting local creators
From locally grown food to local authors, thelocalism movement has proven important toindependent businesses and the economic vitalityof communities.
How far does your store go beyond offering a"Local" or "Regional" section of books?Carrying a robust selection of locally createdmerchandise shows that we "walk the talk."
We ask customers to buy locally, so let's show them
we also live by thatmantra by addinglocally-createditems to our curatedselection.
If you carry cardsmade by localartists, call attentionto it by addingsmall signs thatread:"Local Artist."
When you carrymerchandisecreated by localartists, introduce theartist to yourcustomers. Intoday's world, mostof our customersare not buying"stuff", they arebuying the story.
Here's an exampleyou can use tocreate your owntemplate. Insert aphoto of the artistand a short bio andyou are facilitating connections between yourmerchandise and its creator.
Top off a mixed merchandise display of books, art,textiles, and/or jewelry with a sign or graphic, likethe one below. Just print this graphic and insert inan acrylic sign holder.
call out unique and one-of-a-kind itemsin your curated selection.
Improving Staff Wages
first, check factors within your control
If there is one thing most of us can agree upon, it'sthe desire to improve compensation for our hard-working staff.
How can we pay themmore?
The ABACUS FinancialSurvey of IndependentBookstores, aninvaluable reportcompiled by theAmerican BooksellersAssociation, shows thatthe average payrollexpense now runs21.1% of sales forstores in the "highlyprofitable" category.
Payroll is a significant investment, so managing staffand putting routines in place will help you useevery dollar wisely. Here are some ways to look atimproving staffing, scheduling, compensation, andproductivity:
Is everyone busy? Make it clear what staffmembers should be working on when they're notassisting customers. "To Do Today" lists should bepart of the daily management routine, opening andclosing checklists too.
Who is ready to contribute in new ways? If thereare things you can now delegate, invest in training.Your time can be most valuable growing thebusiness.
Have you asked, "What else should we be doingto promote reading and shopping at the bookstore?"Some of the best ideas can come from your staff.Make this part of the staff meeting agenda. Addressthis during your annual performance discussions.
Who isn't working out? If you have someone whoisn't pulling their weight, hasn't caught onto thejob, or is causing friction, it's eating up your payroll.Take action for the sake of your team.
Is everyone handselling? I was in an indiebookstore where the only staff member on duty wasshopping online for shoes. There was no greeting
from her let alone an interesting conversation aboutbooks. Observe what's happening on the sales floorand be honest with yourself. Engaging withcustomers and writing shelf-talkers help improvesales, which helps increase the payroll budget.
Are you rewarding great performance? Studiesshow that we need goals, feedback (positive as wellas constructive), and rewards to continue to engageat high levels.
The path to offering better compensation? Improvedproductivity and increased sales, both under yourleadership.
retail is detail.payroll is our 2nd greatest investment
to monitor and manage.
Fabulous Finds
indies supporting indies
deuxglass paper arts.
Nestled on WhidbeyIsland, off the Pacific coastof Washington, husbandand wife team Jim andBlanka combine their joyof art with appreciation offine papers to createabsolutely beautifulgreeting cards.
From contemplative cloudsto botanical images, sea
and air to holiday wishes and beyond, you'll find avariety of collections, all premium in design withdeep hand-embossed images. Cards are printedwith bamboo and cotton fine paper and have a polysleeve. $22.50 for box of 6 (retail); you choose thegreeting.
Tree-Free Greetings.
In 1999 when SteveSilverstein pickedup a RecycledGreetings card andcouldn't find anyreference to therecycled content,he thought theremust be a betterway.
Tree-Free, based inKeene, New Hampshire, uses 100% post-consumerrecycled paper. Their print and production facilitiesare also 100% solar powered.
You'll find a wide variety of art featured on theirgreeting cards.
Here's a sampling from their holiday collection:Hanukkah, the Winter Solstice, and Christmas.Individual cards at $3 retail and boxed holidaycards at $12 retail for 12 cards.
Thinking of gift-giving for the holidays, Tree-Freealso has a wide selection of Vacuum-InsulatedBarista Tumblers and Travel Mugs ($26 retail), andother drinkware.
Thank you, Tree-Free, for giving us more ways tocontribute to a healthy earth!
indies.always more interesting.
Ready toenhance your
sense ofplace?
Bookstore Designwith Liz Dion & Donna Paz Kaufman
A special sense of place is what customers expectwhen they go to an indie store or neighborhoodshop.
Sometimes all it takes is tweaking the fixture layout,changing paint colors, painting some tables, addinga few touches. Are you ready to refresh the customerexperience in your store?
We'd love to work with you!
Contact Donna at [email protected] a free consultation.
