12.18.25 CALIBA Bookseller News & Information

Bookseller Newsletter,

Happy Holidays - Newsletters will return January 8th, 2026
CALIBA Bookseller Newsletter

IN THIS ISSUE

CALIBA Office Closed During the Holidays

WELCOME TO 2025'S NEW CALIBA MEMBERS

CALIBA PROGRAMS & EVENTS

Tips for Using the Winter Catalog

Marketing Assets

2025 Golden Poppy Book Awards - Get Ready to Vote on Jan. 1st + By the Numbers

2026 Golden Poppy - Become a Committee Member

Join a CALIBA Committee

*WE NEED YOUR INPUT* Education Committee Form

Dates and Deadlines

Scholarships & Grants

Classifieds

CALIBA's Favorite Reads in 2025

Resources

CALIBA Bookstore Map

CALIBA Staff

BESTSELLER LISTS

The Los Angeles Times & Southern California Independent Bookstore Bestseller List

The San Francisco Chronicle & Northern California Independent Bookstore Bestseller List

MEMBER CORNER

Want to be featured in the Member Corner? Submit your details here. Note: must be a CALIBA Member

TOP 5 BESTSELLERS

Flying off the Shelves at...

Submit your top 5 best sellers in our new "Flying off the Shelves at..." feature in our weekly newsletter! Submit your best sellers list here. Note: must be a CALIBA Member

Substitute Bookseller Program
Proud Member of CALIBA digital sign

SHOW OFF YOUR CALIBA SPIRIT

Click here to download the file (Login required).

CALIBA OFFICE CLOSED DURING THE HOLIDAYS

The CALIBA Office will be closed December 25th and January 1st. We wish you wonderful holiday celebrations and a happy New Year!

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

We hope you are having a wonderful holiday season in and out of your stores. There has been a lot of heaviness this year so we want to close it out looking forward and celebrating the good experiences. Thank you to each and every one of you who attended our shows, committee meetings, town halls, Zoom calls, and Discord chats. The overall feedback we received after our in-person events is always how important and wonderful it is for us to come together – how uplifting it can be, and a reminder that we are not alone. 

Here at CALIBA we have a lot to celebrate: successful shows, growing membership, evolving programming, and most of all, a wonderful community. The CALIBA staff and Board sees the work that you do every day, supporting your communities in unprecedented times, standing up for the value of knowledge, indie bookstores, and spreading the joy of books.

Below are some of CALIBA’s successes from this past year and things we’re looking forward to. We’d love to hear about your “wins” for this year and goals for next year too! 

Wishing you a successful holiday season in-store and a lovely time outside of it. We can’t wait to see you again next year. Happy Holidays. 

Best Wishes, 

Hannah, Valentina & Alecia

CALIBA 2025 Wrapped

WELCOME TO 2025'S

NEW CALIBA MEMBERS

CALIBA is proud to welcome the following 39 bookstores in 2025. From new and used to genre-specific stores, Eureka to San Diego, these new members demonstrate the liveliness of bookselling in California.

12 Jewelz Books & Wellness

All Booked Up

Beers Books

Bees Books & Binds

Bird Rock Bookshop

Black Bird Bookstore & Cafe

Bluebird Play

BookAttic

Buteo Books

Celestial Books

Crafty Chicks Book Nook

Ember & Ink

Fables & Fancies

Old Haunts Bookshop

Golden Hour Bookshop

Handcrafts and Hardbacks

Heartbound Book Shop

Hey Books!

Hill's Bookstore

In Bloom Bookery

Intersectionality

Judging By The Cover

Letterpress Words & Wine

Mon Amour Bookshop

Moonstone & Mist

Natalia's Coffee and Books

Noe Valley Books

Scrawl, Scribble & Smirch Bookshop

Seal Beach Bookshop

Soft Launch

Tally Ho! Books

Temerity Books

The Inked Octopus Bookstore & Coffeehouse

The Love Potion Library

The Plot Twist Bookstore

The Quirky Crow Bookshop

The Undead Bookshop

Through the Fold

YOU SHOULD READ

CALIBA PROGRAMS & EVENTS

Winter 2025 Catalog

TIPS FOR USING THE WINTER CATALOG

CALIBA creates the Holiday Catalog to help booksellers sell books and support the organization. With the help of the other regionals, we have compiled a list of ideas for making the most of your holiday catalog that you can find here.

Note: CALIBA has 1,000 catalog copies. If you run out of copies or missed the order deadline - email info@caliballiance.org.

Catalog tip from Amy at Banter Bookshop, in Fremont:

Bring catalogs to an apartment complex's leasing
office to use in a new tenant's welcome package.

Have other ideas on how bookstores can use the Winter Catalog? Share it on Discord or email Alecia!

Catalog Resources

Certified Indie Campaign logo

MARKETING ASSETS

CALIBA's Marketing Assets: Certified Indie Campaign | National Bird Day (1/5/26) - assets coming 12/26 | Love Your Pet Day (2/20/26) - assets coming 1/23/26

ABA's Marketing Assets: Shelf Care for the Holidays | Bring Jólabókaflóð to Your Store

Commons: Indie Bookstore Challenge

Get Ready to Vote - Bookseller voting starts January 1st

2025 GOLDEN POPPY AWARDS: GET READY TO CAST YOUR VOTE

Voting for the 2025 Golden Poppy winners will take place January 1st-11th.

2% discount from Ingram on Golden Poppy Finalists, no code needed. Runs through Feb. 11th.

2025 GOLDEN POPPIES - BY THE NUMBERS

The Golden Poppy finalists have been announced! Click here to view the 2025 Golden Poppy Award Finalists. Congratulations to the authors and publishers whose books made the lists! The Virtual Golden Poppy Awards will take place on January 29th at 7 PM PST.

Golden Poppy 2025 By the Numbers

IMPORTANT DATES

  • January 1-11: Bookseller Voting Period
  • January 11: Deadline to Enter Display Contest
  • January 29: Golden Poppy Book Awards Virtual Ceremony
  • January 30: Shelf Awareness x Golden Poppy Awards Winners Emails Sent to Bookstore Customers

2026 Golden Poppy Book Awards Timeline | Learn about the Golden Poppy Awards History

2026 GOLDEN POPPY AWARDS - BECOME A COMMITTEE MEMBER

Since its creation in 2020, the dream of the CALIBA Board has been an in-person Golden Poppy Award ceremony and in 2026 we are finally making it happen! We are starting to build our committees for 2026. Please review the requirements in the 2026 Golden Poppy Committee form (some are new this year!) The 2026 Golden Poppy Committee Form closes December 31, 2025.

CALIBA Committees

GET INVOLVED! JOIN A CALIBA COMMITTEE

Join one of our committees and contribute your insights, passion, and creativity to the future and strength of CALIBA. Most committees require a few zoom calls a year, assisting the office, vetting authors and books for programs, and/or volunteering at in-person conferences. Sign up before committees resume in January. Click here for more details about CALIBA Committees.

*WE NEED YOUR INPUT* EDUCATION COMMITTEE FORM

The CALIBA Education Committee wants to hear from our bookstore members! Share ideas, topics and/or volunteer as a panelist. No matter your role in your store, we want to hear from you! Click here to fill out the form.

BINC Year-End Campaign

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

December 14-22: Hanukkah

December 24: Jólabókaflóð

December 25: CALIBA Office Closed in
Observance of Christmas

December 26-January 1: Kwanzaa

January: #JanuaryinJapan / International Creativity Month / Financial Wellness Month / National Book Blitz Month

January 1-11: 2025 Golden Poppy Awards
Bookseller Voting

January 11: 2025 Golden Poppy Awards
Display Contest Entry Deadline

January 12: Basic Bookselling Course & Store
and Operations Management registration opens

January 26: Profitability Master Class registration opens

January 29: 2025 Golden Poppy
Awards Virtual Ceremo
ny - RSVP Here

March 31: Indie Bookstore Day 2026 General Participation Form closes

April 25: Independent Bookstore Day

SCHOLARSHIPS & GRANTS

Have a grant or scholarship for booksellers? Email Alecia to be listed on our site.

CLASSIFIEDS

  • Associate Buyer - Asian Art Museum, San Francisco
  • Bookstore for Sale - Camino Books, Del Mar
  • Bookstore Manager - Chevalier's, Los Angeles
  • Publishing Assistant - The Collective Book Studio, Oakland

CALIBA'S FAVORITE READS IN 2025

Check out CALIBA's 2025 Reading List!

Alecia Supporting Staff

Hannah Executive Director

Valentina Operations Manager

RESOURCES

CALIBA new logo

CALIBA RESOURCES

Click here for a complete list.

FALL FEST

CALIBA COMMITTEES

American Bookseller Association logo

ABA LINKS

Binc Book Industry Charitable Foundation logo

BINC LINKS

Professional Booksellers School

PBS' LINKS

5% DISCOUNT FOR CALIBA MEMBERS - Independent Study: CALIBAind | Live Courses: CALIBAlive

BOOKSTORE MAP

CALIBA Bookstore Map

This map shows our current bookstore members.

Don't see your store on the map? Check your information on our website, then contact Alecia to update the map.

JOIN US ON DISCORD

Email Valentina to join.

Current CALIBA bookseller membership required.

HOUSEKEEPING

We're working hard to make your life easier with membership tips & tricks:

How to set up auto-pay for dues.

CALIBA Merchandise
Become a Member

CALIBA STAFF

Hannah Walcher

Executive Director

hannah@caliballiance.org

Valentina Moberg

Operations Manager

valentina@caliballiance.org

Alecia Reddick

Supporting Staff

alecia@caliballiance.org

Support CALIBA

Publishers support CALIBA when bookstores participate.

Bookstore Participation = Publisher Sponsorship = CALIBA = Bookstore Education, Advocacy, Networking +++

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