Allison Hill

CEO, American Booksellers Association

FOR PROVIDING THE CORNER BOOKSTORE WITH A DIGITAL STOREFRONT FOR DECADES, independent bookstores had been in decline. But something strange is happening: 425 new stores have opened in the U.S. over the past two years, bringing the national total to more than 2,500, with nearly 200 more slated to open in the next year. And 70% of them report an increase in sales compared to before the pandemic.

One force behind this renaissance is Allison Hill, CEO of the American Booksellers Association (ABA), who has given indie retailers the tools they need to compete with online giants. A former bookstore CEO, she knew how hard it was for community gathering spots to digitize their operations. This year, she spearheaded a $3 million investment in a new enterprise technology, called Indiecommerce 2.0, that’s like Shopify but tailored to booksellers. It offers shoppers the features that they have come to expect, such as one-click checkouts and shipping updates, along with local stores’ recommendations and event listings. “It allows bookstores to express their personality, but gives them all the bells and whistles” of a competitive e-commerce site, Hill says.

Since she implemented ABA’S new platform, 600 stores have signed on, and Hill expects another 400 will join by the end of 2024. Based on ABA’S data, Indiecommerce 2.0 drives a 20% increase in ecommerce sales. “People who had never thought to shop on their local bookshop’s website are now [frequenting it],” says Hill. “We believe that indie bookstores can go up against Amazon and take a bigger bite of the pie.”