SUSAN AIKENS

CHILDREN’S BOOKS, YOUNG ADULT & CHAIN RETAIL MARKETING

I’ve always felt that there was something inherently noble about selling books, especially children’s books. I’ve devoted my entire professional career to putting great books into the hands of children. I was Borders’ Senior Buyer for Children’s Books. I bought both fiction & non-fiction for kids, ages 6–teen. Over the last 10 years, I’ve bought thousands of new titles including Harry Potter, the Wimpy Kid series, Rick Riordan’s books, and the A Series of Unfortunate Events books. I worked at the Borders corporate headquarters for 17 years. Prior to joining Borders, I managed a Doubleday Bookshop.

ANNE BARTHOLOMEW

ONLINE RETAIL, MARKETING, and CONTENT DEVELOPMENT
favorite categories include debut fiction, mystery & thrillers, cookbooks & food writing, memoir, young adult

Anne Bartholomew is a writer, editor, and bookseller with particular experience in online retail and content development at Amazon.com. Much of her work over the last five years has been focused on connecting authors with readers via custom marketing, interviews, reviews and social media. She is a graduate of Fordham University in New York, as well as the Denver Publishing Institute, and the Institute of Culinary Education. As a reader, her turn-to categories include debut fiction and mysteries, cookbooks, young adult, and memoir, but she’ll happily read anything that comes with a good recommendation.

SEAN CONCANNON

RETAIL MARKETPLACE, INDIE BOOK SELLING and SOCIAL MEDIA

As an independent publisher’s representative, Sean Concannon called on chains, wholesalers and independent booksellers throughout the northeast for Perseus, Routledge, Kensington, and many others. During his 15-year bookselling career, he has advised hundreds of publishers on sales strategy for thousands of titles.

Email: seanconcannon@sonnetmedia.net
Twitter: @seanconcannon

JACK COVERT/800CEOREAD

BUSINESS, RETAIL, SPECIAL SALES

Jack Covert is the President and Founder of 800-CEO-READ. In 1984, Jack was hired by the Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops (an independent chain of bookstores in Milwaukee from 1927–2009) to promote business and computer books to the Milwaukee business community. Over the past decade, 800-CEO-READ has concentrated on selling business books while also spreading great business ideas via its daily blog, its monthly newsletter The Keen Thinker, the monthly publication of essays on ChangeThis, its annual Business Book Awards, and its yearly magazine In The Books. In 2010, 800-CEO-READ began a partnership with Inc. to publish and promote its Business Book Best Seller List. In 2012, 800-CEO-READ will offer an exciting new online service, KnowledgeBlocks, to help users save, organize, and customize their business information.

Jack grew that 3-shelf business book section of the store into a 7-million-dollar specialty business book retailer and has earned quite a reputation. “[I]n the world of business-book publishing . . . , his championship of obscure works has helped turn such books as The Goal into national bestsellers, and his monthly best seller list is a frequently cited standard.” Then–Doubleday/Currency editor Harriet Rubin described Covert “as not simply a bookseller—he’s a tracker and a prophet” (Inc., 1995).
In 2000, Jack began writing reviews of new and notable business books in a monthly, nationally syndicated column entitled “Jack Covert Selects.” Ultimately these reviews led him to collaborate on The 100 Best Business Books of All Time, a book that not only ranks the best business books, but also provides references to nearly 400 notable books for the business reader. The 100 Best has now been updated in paperback and reprinted in ten languages.

Email: Jack@800CEOREAD.com
Twitter: @JackCovert

NANCY QUINN

INDIE RETAILING/MARKETING, NONPROFIT, SOCIAL MEDIA with special interest in DEBUT/WOMEN’S/LITERARY FICTION

For 20 years, Nancy served as Marketing Director at the Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops, where she helped create national buzz for such books as Astrid & Veronika and Girl with a Pearl Earring. Now Nancy works with hundreds of independent retailers through Local First Milwaukee, networking both locally and nationally. At Third Sector Creative, she aids local nonprofits with marketing strategy, public relations and social media. Passionate about women’s and literary fiction, Nancy uses social media to share the love of reading good books. You can take the girl out of the bookstore, but not the bookseller out of the girl!

Twitter: @nancyquinn
Linked-In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyquinnmilw

PAMELA TURNER

RETAIL, LIBRARY MARKETING, ONLINE COMMERCE, GLOBAL MARKETS, INSTITUTIONAL CATALOGS OF DIGITAL MEDIA

Pamela’s evolution in becoming a strategic expert in the publishing world began with post-graduate import-export work in a Tel Aviv buying office. Learning the importance of international markets for products, she carried that knowledge into the operation of Under Cover Books, the Midwest chain of independent bookstores founded by her family. The community of new breed hand-sellers and influencers helped launch popular and topical authors and created destination salons for thinkers. A strong reputation with publishing suppliers enabled Pam to introduce the concept of digital reading and to encourage publishers to incorporate eBook creation plans into their business sales models.

Pam entered the digital media arena as Chair of the IDPF’s Business Special Interest Group. She was able to build one of the world’s largest digital marketplaces, OverDrive’s Content Reserve for library patrons and consumers. Then she expanded her library integration work for Ingram’s Content Group.

Since 2000 Pam has coordinated profitable initiatives for technology software companies and global digital resellers utilizing the opportunities for online commerce with secure digital fulfillment. She has spotlighted the importance of libraries as vital partners in evangelizing e-reading and listening, and has assisted the narrative audio industry in finding effective virtual revenue shelves. Pam is proud to work with educators, scholars and publishers who continue to offer rich soil for the planting of new curriculum and interactive learning.

Throughout her career, Pam has been an advocate for authors, publishers and retailers, by representing and refining the services of global vendors who provide trusted guidance and creative profits.

With her Turn the Page Consultant activities, in all strategies print and digital (marketing and creation of interactive audio/media/enhanced educational tools), Pam continues to hone her skills in marketing books and reaching readers through EVERY channel, using the timeless and the newest tools, now in a global marketplace.

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/turnthepage