Special Report from the Religious Booksellers Trade Exhibit

by Lynn Garrett and Jana Riess, Religion BookLine -- Publishers Weekly, 6/7/2006

The Religious Booksellers Trade Exhibit met May 30-June 2 in St. Charles, Illinois. With no scheduling conflict this time with BookExpo America (which met earlier than usual this year), publisher exhibitors at this the convention for Catholic, Episcopal and other liturgical booksellers looked rested and relaxed. Most of them reported lackluster traffic on the floor, despite strong attendance at the daily luncheons and the personality party on Wednesday evening.

Slow Foot Traffic, Mixed Orders

"Traffic has been down noticeably from previous years, especially on the first day," noted Andrew Bronson, special markets sales and marketing manager for InterVarsity Press. "And traffic didn't really pick up on the second day. For us it begs the question: are there fewer stores coming to RBTE?" Dave Lewis, director of sales and marketing for Baker Publishing Group, whiled away the customer-free hours on the last morning of the show by doing Sudoku puzzles with newly promoted senior director of marketing Bobbi Jo Heyboer. "It's certainly slower than average," Lewis said. "It makes us wonder if attendance is down this year."

But according to publishing consultant Bob Byrns, co-founder of the trade show (with Peter Dwyer, director of Liturgical Press), 167 bookstores were represented—one more than last year—and total attendance was up, to 970 from 922 last year. Of the 257 exhibiting companies, about 80 were book publishers, Byrns said, with the rest being dealers in church goods, art, jewelry, store services and the like.

While the perception of low traffic seemed to be universal, some publishers reported that orders were steady or even slightly up this year. Sam Barry, marketing and promotions manager for Harper San Francisco, said that "we had a few more orders than last year, and the orders were definitely larger than last year. People were more willing to buy." Bill Thomason of Westminster John Knox Press said that sales were better this year, and Jossey-Bass's senior marketing manager, Sandy Siegle, confirmed that although traffic was light, "We have taken several good orders. I think we actually took more orders this year."

Paraclete trade sales representative Sr. Antonia Cleverly also took larger orders. She speculated that "the smaller stores are only going to CMN [Catholic Marketing Network, held this year Aug. 1-4 in King of Prussia, Penn.], which is for stores who only want Catholic stuff. Here we are seeing more monastery stores and Episcopal stores, and they are bigger."

Stuart Matlins, publisher at Jewish Lights/Skylight Paths, said, "On the one hand, it seems quieter. On the other, we're ahead of last year in orders. I think there are fewer buyers, but they are taking bigger orders." Skylight Paths was featuring The Quilting Path by Louise Silk (Aug.). "We did so well with The Knitting Way that we've decided to do a whole series on spirituality and crafts," Matlins said, with other books coming on fabric arts and other media. Echoing the general sentiment, he added, "This is my favorite industry show. It's so civilized, the people are so nice. They take the time to learn about new books and savor old ones."

New and Renewed Exhibitors

Despite slower-than-usual foot traffic, RBTE attracted some new book exhibitors for 2006. California-based art publisher Getty Publications exhibited for the first time, with Rob Flynn, acting marketing and sales manager, pleased with the debut. "People really give me feedback at this show," he reported. "And I've written more orders today than I did at all of BEA." Flynn, who is a former editor at Yale University Press and acquired religion books there, wants some of Getty's art books to be carried in the religion niche markets. "Our books have a lot of Christian art and symbolism, and some of our line is in the $20-$25 price range," he explained.

Another freshman exhibitor was Georgetown University Press, which has been beefing up its line in academic and trade religion books. Marketing and sales director Gina Lundquist said that "over the last couple of years, we've had a couple of people recommend that we come here, and now we have a good, well-rounded list" to attract attention. Lundquist acknowledged that her goal in this first year was more to "see what it was all about" and hear from buyers, rather than meet a target sales quota. "This is a good way to let people know what we're all about. It's been great to hear from booksellers about what they're looking for."

Also new to RBTE this year was Morning Light Press. Sales, marketing and acquisitions editor Steve Jadick told RBL, "I'm so impressed with how open-minded these booksellers are. They've responded well to our very ecumenical Parabola list," which includes books by or about Jung, Krishnamurti, Gurdjieff and Rumi. "We are loving this show," he added. Morning Light's clever miniature catalogue was eye-catching—a 4" by 2 ½" folder contained playing-card sized color images of jackets with book descriptions on the back, all tucked in an envelope imprinted with the phrase "Illumination begins with that first spark…".

Back at the show this year after a decade-long absence was local behemoth Tyndale House, best known for its evangelical Protestant books, especially in fiction. But in the 1990s, said Oliver Strong, district manager for the Northeast, the publisher had more of a foothold in the Catholic market, and it is interested in pursuing that niche again. "We're testing the waters here," he said. "We have to gain the recognition again in the Catholic market. At RBTE, buyers are looking for companies they already know. We're just getting started here and have to earn our keep." Added sales and marketing analysis director Dan Balow, "In a mature industry like ours, no market is too small to pursue. It's the two-percent solution, increasing our business in small increments."

Bibles the Watchword at Harper SF

For Harper San Francisco, the biggest news was the press's ambitious plans to relaunch the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible early next year. To inform retailers and increase visibility for the brand, Harper hosted a welcoming reception for retailers on the first evening of the show. "We wanted to alert them that HSF was now actively pursuing Bible publishing, and showcase the development of resources that utilize the NRSV and RSV," said Hargis Thomas, who came from Oxford in March to become HSF's director of Bible sales.

Thomas said that now that HSF will be the clearinghouse for all NRSV licensing and permissions, the NRSV brand can be controlled and strategically directed for the first time since the translation's initial release in 1990. "For years, there was no strategic plan for the NRSV and RSV," said Thomas. "There were six or seven separate publishers, but no one was there to help protect the text from the market." Thomas said that this sometimes resulted in redundant products and editions, causing the NRSV to compete against itself. HSF will unify the line and also develop supplementary resources, like a "spiritual formation guide" that was available at the show, to further cement the NRSV's place in the Bible market.

Applause, Applause

Just before the show (May 26) the Catholic Press Association announced its annual book awards, which had some RBTE exhibitors smiling. Jossey-Bass won in the Spirituality Hardcover category with The Way of the Mystics. Orbis Books took first place in Spirituality Softcover for Walk in a Relaxed Manner. Crossroad's Blessed Among All Women was first in Popular Presentations of the Catholic Faith; Running into the Arms of God from ACTA Publications won the First-Time Author Prize. BlueBridge took top honors in Best Book by a Small Publisher for The Gift of Prayer. For a complete list of the winners in all 22 categories, go to http://www.catholicpress.org/06bkwin.htm

The Fun Nuns

Ave Maria Press author Sr. Anne Bryan Smollin (Live, Laugh and Be Blessed, Mar.) was a big hit at the Thursday luncheon, where she wowed the crowd with a hilarious stand-up comedy routine. Sr. Helen Prejean (Dead Man Walking, The Death of Innocents) delivered the keynote address at the Thursday evening banquet on the somber topic of opposing the death penalty. But afterwards she could be seen in the hotel's karaoke bar, enjoying a pint and leafing through the songbook in search of the right Beatles number. Also at her table was Sr. Joan Chittister (The Friendship of Women, RBL Q&A May 3), who joined Orbis Books marketing director Patti Byrns in singing a fist-pumping rendition of "I Am Woman," to the delight of RBTE-goers and the befuddlement of Smith Barney conventioneers also in the bar that night.

Next year's RBTE will be held May 29 to June 1 at the Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles, Ill..