Bookfairs and such...

["Earl J. Moniz" <earlj@moniz.org>]

Tina, and our pal, Et Al.,
I think you're on to something with the local bookstore and their 20%
discount...
If that 20% discount is for institutions only, you might offer them this sort
of arrangement:
stores like that might already give 10% discounts to regular customers or have
some sort
of frequent buyer plan... the 20% might be the most they give to any patron...
so, ask them if
you can arrange it to provide your students and parents a 15% discount and give
you the last 5%
in credit toward your library purchases - then, you charge parents a $5 fee to
join the school club
to get the discount (you get a year-round source of credit for books while also
giving you a cash boost each year for supplies and such during the membership
drive - heck, you could have two membership drives each year, the second one
just before summer vacation) ...
You may have to create some sort of club card for those who join so they
can show the cashiers and get the maximum discount...  You might even create
levels for parents who
join every year by offering higher discounts (15% the first year; 17% the
second consecutive year; and 18 or 19% the third consecutive year and beyond -
or the savings could begin with 12 or 13% and increase from there)...  The
store might already have some cards printed for such a club and all the school
needs to do is provide some sort of stamp on the cards to verify membership and
provide the higher discount rate...  the store then handles all the paperwork,
discounting, and the production of the cards... (you may need to have parents
supply a copy of their sale receipts so you can ensure that you get all the
credits you deserve in addition to the monthly or quarterly reports from the
store)...

One might even be able to schedule a night where only members in the school
club are permitted to come and purchase items ... and the students can be
offered a read-in or storyteller(s) while the parents browse...
the possibilities are tremendous... good luck...

Aloha y'all   ...   Earl J.
"Just an old Maui boy with a poor sense of direction ...
Fayetteville, NC ... working his way back home; one state at a time!"
www.moniz.org / earlj@moniz.org
Librarian of Fortune  (Have MLS Will Travel)

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