The American Booksellers Association (ABA) has created an Olympic-themed marketing campaign for US indie booksellers to tie-in with the opening of the Games in Paris on 26 July.
It says: “Indies Take The Gold is an engaging marketing campaign designed to celebrate the spirit of community and excellence of independent bookstores during the Summer Olympics. The campaign leverages the excitement of the games to promote independent bookstores and all that they offer. The goal is to highlight the value of shopping local, foster a sense of community pride, and encourage customers to support neighbourhood indie bookstores.”
The ABA says it is creating the campaign to help combat Amazon Prime days. It adds: “Indie Bookstores year after year earn gold medals in personal book recommendations, community support, local job creation, building relationships, and championing debut and diverse authors. So this Prime Day, July 16-17, encourage your customers to choose the gold standard. When they support indie bookstores, they experience the difference themselves.”
The announcement coincides with stories in the US media about Amazon to open its first physical department stores, though the retailer has not confirmed this.