The Independent Bookstore Day is an annual celebration held every last Saturday of April of each year. It is celebrated by bookstores in different parts of the world. During this day, the creativity of authors, publishers, and booksellers are showcased in the reading community so that people can be encouraged to buy books and more authors can be motivated to write more.
What is the Independent Bookstore Day?
The special day is a one-day international party that takes place nationally and internationally across various independent bookstores. Every bookstore is unique and independent. Hence, each one has a different way of celebration. Some things that will always be included in the party with all the cupcakes, music, events, readings, and contests are the sharing of exclusive books and literary items that people can get a hand of only during the event.
Also Read: National Author’s Day
History of the Independent Bookstore Day
The celebration of this special day started in 2015. The founder was Samantha Schoech who is a writer, editor, and copywriter from the Northern California Independent Bookseller’s Association. During that day, over 400 bookstores participated in the event. It was established to help independent bookstores boost their sales, increase their merchandise, and bring spotlights into these stores. The event is sponsored and participated in by various organizations including the American Booksellers Association, Penguin Random House, and Ingram.
When is the Independent Bookstore Day?
The celebration of the Independent Bookstore Day always happens in the last Saturday of April each year. This means that this year, the event will be celebrated on April 24, since this is the last Saturday of the month of April this year.
Celebration of the Independent Bookstore Day
With hundreds or even thousands of independent bookstores all over the world, there are many ways on how the special day is celebrated. In fact, the event was created with the unity and support of independent bookstores worldwide but the way of celebrating remains to be different from one bookstore to another. There is no established rule or ways to follow for the celebration of the event. But there are a lot of similarities in the way of celebrating for many bookstores.
Exclusive Works and Collections
Perhaps the most famous activity during the day is the showcasing of exclusive works and collections by independent bookstores. There are rare and limited edition merchandises they got on hold and they showcase these during the special day. Many bookworms and authors try to get a hold of copies of these especially since most of these works are masterpieces.
Examples of such merchandises include literature-based projects, collectors’ items created only for the event, and unique books. These items cannot be obtained before the event or after it. They are also not available online. You can only grab one during the event.
Sales Promotion
Another major activity during the day is sales promotion for independent bookstores. It is a fact that while other independent bookstores become well-known and successful, there are still others that struggle in terms of getting customers. Hence, one participative activity during the Indie Bookstore Day is sales promotion which involve some activities that will boost the sales of independent bookstores. For instance, the most commonly used way is offering discounts for books. This way, more people will be attracted to buy the discounted books and then take a look at other books in the store. With that, the indie bookstore can be marked on the map.
Another way, though rare, is when independent bookstores invite famous authors to give a reading or speech inside their bookstore where people can gather. This is also a good way of promoting their stores.
Writing Promotion
The products and merchandises available in independent bookstores are not the only things promoted during the day. Writing is also promoted wherein current authors are encouraged to write more and aspiring writers are encouraged to continue their dreams and goals.
Independent Bookstore Day Social Media Celebration
Of course, the celebration is highly present in Social Media. Although the event’s celebration is still young – only in its 5th year – many people are already aware of the event. That is why they share hashtags like #IndependentBookstoreDay in Twitter during the event. People in Facebook also share status about the day and those with Instagram accounts share pictures of how they celebrated the day.