Correction: Booksellers Trade Exhibit not open to public

To correct a May 8 Episcopal Life Online feature article, the Religious Booksellers Trade Exhibit (RBTE) and the concurrent meetings of the Episcopal Booksellers Association (EBA) are not open to the public. RBTE is a trade exhibit, and bibliophiles who arrive with their sturdy book bags, as the article suggests, will be disappointed to learn they are ineligible for discounts and "freebies" and autographed copies of new books.  RBTE participants pay for registration, and identification is required at all RBTE events.  Book and merchandise vendors are on the exhibit floor, but there are no retail book stores.  Items in the displays are for exhibit, not for retail sale. 
 
Also to clarify, The Episcopal Booksellers Association has no corporate ties with RBTE. The two are entirely independent organizations. Meetings of EBA currently take place at the venue in order to take best advantage of travel dollars and time, yet like the Association of Catholic
Booksellers also meeting on location, EBA is not a "child" of RBTE.  EBA meetings take place elsewhere and throughout the year.  EBA store managers attend many independent trade exhibits; the choice is a matter of geography and product need.
 
The Episcopal Booksellers Association conveys the voices of Episcopal readers and customers to the writers, publishers, and manufacturers who sell materials with religious subjects and imagery. Episcopal stores serve a small niche market, and EBA assists publishers to identify that market and the books and products appropriate to the Episcopal tradition and liturgy. The EBA meetings held in May do allow joyful camaraderie, yet members are there primarily for business: to communicate with colleagues, to mentor new book store managers, to share marketing ideas, to compare business software and business techniques, to introduce books and authors.

Registration and payment are required for RBTE, paid membership for EBA, and the events serve purposes for bookselling professionals.  The event in St. Charles, IL, is not a book fair.

Episcopal Life regrets the error.