Canadian Independent Bookstore Day (CIBD) will be supported this year  with a new online resource that aims to bolster interest in indie bookstores on April 27 – and throughout the year. 

Indiebookstores.ca was launched by the Canadian Independent Booksellers Association (CIBA) in January. The website helps readers find specific titles at their local bookstores and also features a directory that allows users to look for indie bookstores near them and to filter the results by specific amenities, such as those with cafes or that sell CDs and records. 

CIBA started work on the project with market research in January 2023, using funding from the Support for Booksellers program of the Canada Book Fund, says CIBA executive director Laura Carter.

The idea for the site grew from the success of Bookmanager’s Shop Local API, which allows readers to find specific titles at independent bookstores near them.

“We quickly saw the value in creating a collective website that would serve this function and more – crucially [including] the directory and map of indie bookstores in Canada,” Carter says.

Bookseller and publisher members of CIBA alike were interested in such an online resource, and as the organization’s CIBD campaigns grew, it made sense to have a website that would provide online home for the yearly campaign.

The directory includes independent bookstores across the country, though CIBA member stores have more detailed entries with photos and unique store descriptions.

Carter says CIBA hopes that CIBD will have a more lasting impact thanks to this new resource. 

The annual campaign has grown each year since the booksellers association relaunched the event in 2021, Carter says.

“Part of that is greater engagement across the board from our partners. Publishers are doing more, they’re creating swag and exclusives and contributing cash sponsorships, our bookseller membership is growing, and booksellers are seeing the impact of the campaign and getting more involved,” she says.

This year, in addition to the broader CIBA initiatives for the one-day love-fest for indies – which includes love notes from authors and a CIBA-led contest for readers, which encourages book lovers to buy books at indie bookstores on April 27 and submit details of their purchase online for a chance to win a gift card to their favourite indie – individual stores and groups of booksellers are offering their own special twist on the day’s celebrations.

Calgary’s Slow Burn Books, a romance indie that is celebrating its first CIBD, has banded together with fellow city indies Owl’s Nest, Shelf Life, Pages, and the Next Page to offer 24 readers a seat on a bus book crawl.

The bus, sponsored by Raincoast/Book Express, will pick up the crawlers at Slow Burn Books at 9:30 a.m. and take them on a 25-km loop through Calgary, with a stop at each of the other four bookstores. 

Slow Burn co-owner Shannon MacNaughton was inspired by the store’s customers when she came up with the idea, her co-owner and sister Nicola says. “We always ask our customers  what they’re up to after visiting our store,” Nicola MacNaughton says. “Often they’ll say, ‘oh yeah, we’re going to hit up another bookstore.’ We thought it would be a cute idea to have an actual bus that takes people from bookstore to bookstore in Calgary.”

Once Raincoast offered to sponsor the bus, there were choices to be made about what capacity the vehicle should have. Slow Burn opted for a 24-seater charter bus to prevent large groups of readers overwhelming smaller spaces, as each store has a different footprint.

Interest in the event was off the charts: the 24 $20 tickets sold out in “less than 30 seconds” and briefly crashed the Slow Burn website. A ticket gets participants a seat on the bus and a $20 gift card to their favourite participating bookstore. 

“It’s very exciting to see everyone come together,” MacNaughton says. “It’s really great to be part of such a special bookselling community in Calgary.”