BookPeople’s Steve Bercu to retire

AUSTIN —Steve Bercu, who has been CEO of Austin’s independent bookstore BookPeople for almost 20 years, plans to retire from full-time bookselling this coming June.

As part of the transition, Elizabeth Jordan has been named general manager of BookPeople. She has worked at the store since 2002 as a bookseller, manager, adult book buyer and inventory operations supervisor. In her new position, she will oversee day-to-day operations of the store, with an emphasis on improving communication among departments, creating efficiencies and increasing sales.

Consuelo Wilder, a former sales floor manager at the store, has been named the adult book buyer and inventory operations supervisor. In her new role, Wilder will curate the selection of frontlist and backlist adult books and manage a staff of assistant buyers, inventory managers and the shipping and receiving departments.

During his time at BookPeople, Bercu built the store into a national literary destination and was a driving force behind the buy local movement–which in some ways started with Keep Austin Weird. He was also president of the American Booksellers Association, and during his presidency, he focused on expanding rapid replenishment programs, simplifying coop, extended terms for publisher payments and moving special sales to local independent bookstores.

(Compiled from media reports)

OBITUARY

Bill Crider

Texas author Bill Crider, “someone who wore nearly every hat in the mystery field–author, critic, columnist, reviewer,” died Feb. 12, 2018. He was 76. In a tribute, Janet Hutchings, editor of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, wrote: “I’ve known Bill since 1990, when I bought the first book in his Truman Smith series (a book that went on to be nominated for the Shamus Award for best first P.I. novel) for the mystery line at Walker Books. When you consider Bill’s incredible output–a half-dozen different mystery series (comprising more than 40 books), plus at least 16 standalones in genres outside the mystery, from horror to western to adventure, and five children’s books — what stands out like a beacon is his modesty about it all. In a world in which self-promotion has become not only the norm but a necessity, I don’t think I ever heard Bill, a multiple Anthony Award winner, offer an unsolicited word about his own work.”

Crider’s books include the Sheriff Dan Rhodes series, Carl Burns series, Stanley Waters series (co-authored with Willard Scott) and Sally Good series. He also contributed to three books in the Stone: M.I.A. Hunter series under the pseudonym Jack Buchanan.

(from Shelf Awareness)

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