Binc’s special initiative benefits bookstores & comic shops, helping communities thrive with these key businesses
The Book Industry Charitable (Binc) Foundation announced today the Survive to Thrive, the special, one-time store grant initiative, will make awards to 115 independent bookstores and comic shops totaling $1.1 million. Ninety-nine stores will receive grants of $10,000 and 16 will receive $7,500. The grant recipients were determined by a juried application process with the goal of assisting stores that were poised to make a strong recovery from the pandemic.
“We are incredibly pleased to announce grants to stores in 48 states. Bookstores and comic shops are vital to the cultural and economic fabric of their communities, and by helping to retain these community anchors, we are helping to preserve the literacy, economic and social benefits bookstores and comic shops provide,” said Pamela French, Binc’s Executive Director. “Every bookstore and comic shop is important to their community, and we are delighted to help as many as we can. Thank you to everyone who donated to Survive to Thrive. Every gift made a difference in helping these stores recover, survive and thrive.”
The Survive to Thrive initiative was launched in March with a leading gift of $500,000 jointly from Ingram Charities and Ingram Content Group. Survive to Thrive received strong support from across the publishing and bookselling communities with leading gifts from Bookshop.org, Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan Publishers, Penguin Random House, and Simon & Schuster. Special thanks to the 12 authors and creators led by Garth Stein and Amor Towles, who made a combined $40,000 matching gift, which influenced an additional $55,000. Thanks also to An Unlikely Story bookstore for their benefit auction.
“Our goal is to do well by helping others do well. Supporting local bookstores and comic shops is an excellent way to support communities as we continue to move beyond the pandemic crisis,” said John R. Ingram, Chairman of Ingram Industries and Ingram Content Group. “Above all else, I am happy to have been a catalyst for helping a group of stores recover from the pandemic. Thank you to my friends and colleagues in publishing and all those who joined together to make the Survive to Thrive initiative successful.”
Thank you to Fletcher Chu-Fong, Nicole Magistro, Erica Rodriguez Merrell, Michael Tucker, and Lori Tucker-Sullivan, who served as the highly knowledgeable review panel, and to Judey Kalchik, who managed the Survive to Thrive grant project. Every application was reviewed and ranked anonymously by all five of the reviewers.
The grant recipients represent 45 percent of the 255 stores in the applicant pool and are located across 48 states. The stores will use the funds to continue implementing innovations and improvements begun as a response to the pressures of the pandemic. Grants are based on ranking criteria that considered economic harm due to the pandemic and each store’s plans to use the money to solidify their operations for long-term success. The grants will be distributed in early July.
To see the entire list of grants given, head to the website.
