Name: Breakout 3 (Established Publishers) - The Ins and Outs of Effective Trade Sales
Start: 2026-05-16T10:40:00-0700
End: 2026-05-16T12:10:00-0700

Breakout 3 (Established Publishers) - The Ins and Outs of Effective Trade Sales

Saturday May 16, 2026 10:40am - 12:10pm PDT

Hyatt Regency - Willamette 3 (2nd floor)

Indie publishers love indie — and national — bookstores! But with more titles than ever competing for shelf space, the challenge to get booksellers to discover, champion, and reorder your books is real. And how do you manage returns? This breakout session dives into the ins and outs of effective trade sales, from positioning your titles for success with independent bookstores and national retailers to crafting compelling offers and merchandising strategies. We’ll explore how sales reps and retailers evaluate new titles, how to partner more strategically with your distributor, and how to align your pricing, packaging, and timing with the realities of the sales cycle . Expect a candid, practical conversation packed with insights you can apply right away to strengthen your retail relationships and drive sell-through.

The Established Publisher breakout sessions are intended for independent publishers who have an established business and experience in the industry, and are looking to successfully grow and scale their publishing company. (Generally you will have been in the publishing industry for at least four years, and have published more than ten titles.) Please note that if you are just starting out and you attend an Established Independent Publisher session you are auditing the class, and we ask that you not take up session time with beginner-level questions.

The audio file is attached. Transcript will be added in early June.

Speakers

Joe Biel

CEO, Microcosm Publishing

Joe Biel is a self-made life-long-learner and autistic publisher who draws origins, inspiration, and methods from punk rock to sell millions of books. Biel is the founder and CEO of Microcosm Publishing, Publishers Weekly's #1 fastest-growing publisher of 2022 and #3 in 2023/202... Read More →

Keith Mosman

Purchasing and Publisher Relations Manager, Powell's Books Inc.

Keith Mosman is the Purchasing and Publisher Relations Manager at Powell’s Books. His first bookstore job was at a Seattle-area Borders in 2001, and he’s worked as a bookseller for most of the intervening 25 years. He’s held positions in numerous sides of bookselling, including inventory, B2B, ma... Read More →

Kurtis Lowe

Regional Sales Rep, Imprint Group

An independent publisher sales rep in the Pacific Northwest since 1997. Kurtis Lowe currently represents Walker Books, Candlewick, Quarto, IPG, The Stable Book Group, Lakeside Book Company, Insight Editions, Wiley, University of Washington Press, Oregon State University Press and more. One of the great honors of his career was working for Elliott Bay Book Company... Read More →

Michelle Halket

Publisher, Central Avenue

Michelle Halket is a proud techno- and bibliophile with a background in economic and market research. After seventeen years at the helm of Central Avenue, she is happily immersed in words, paper stock, and devices of all kinds. She’s the sort of person who asks a lot of questions, tries most things... Read More →

Saturday May 16, 2026 10:40am - 12:10pm PDT
Hyatt Regency - Willamette 3 (2nd floor)

Breakout Sessions + Ask the Experts

Audience For This Session Established Independent Publishers

IBPA Publishing University 2026

Joe Biel

Keith Mosman

Kurtis Lowe

Michelle Halket

Attendees (44)

Get help with the event

IBPA Publishing University 2026

Joe Biel

Keith Mosman

Kurtis Lowe

Michelle Halket

Attendees (44)

Log in to save this to your schedule, view media, leave feedback and see who's attending!

Get help with the event