After two successful years at Beijing, we are happy to make it three in a row.  The Beijing International Book Fair is cited as one of the four major book fairs in the world, and in the past has played host to almost 50 countries and around 120 thousand exhibits.  As China is one of the fastest growing markets in the world, the fair itself represents an opportunity for publishers to break into the market.

Debuting this year at the fair is the first annual International Children’s Publishing Exhibit.  Through the combined efforts of the Combined Book Exhibit, Association of Educational Publishers, The Publishers Association of the UK, the Children’s Book Council, the BIBF itself, and of course our sister company, the American Collective Stand, the ICPE is the first exhibit of its kind at the Beijing International Book Fair. Though small in its inaugural year, the exhibit is expected to draw a lot of heavy traffic because it is an official exhibit, and in a great location.

The Beijing International Book Fair will take place from August 30-September 3 at the China International Exhibition Center.  It is open to trade, as well as the public.  More information on the fair itself, including statistics from past years, can be found at it’s official website, bibf.net.

Seth’s note:  Expect daily blogs from yours truly reporting from Beijing on Comblogged Book Exhibit.

The partnership between Combined Book Exhibit and Reed Exhibitions—the masterminds behind Bookexpo America, The London Book Fair and Bookexpo Canada—continues to be fruitful as a fourth New Title Showcase location is decided upon.  This fourth New Title Showcase will be the first of the brand to be located within a non-English speaking country, making its allure even more appealing as English language books become more and more sought after around the world.

The Sharjah World Book Fair will play host to the New Title Showcase this coming December 5-14.  Sharjah, one of the seven United Arab Emirates, has high demand for English language titles as English is one of the five major languages spoken in the state (though Arabic is the official language).  The UAE is also known for its high spending, especially for education.  In 2005, the Sharjah World Book Fair saw over 200 thousand attendees and over 800 publishers.

Combined Book Exhibit and Reed Exhibitions (including its three major book fairs) will be representing the largest collection of non-Arab works at the fair, bringing works from the U.S, Canada, the U.K and the rest of Europe to one location at the fair in the New Title Showcase.  Registration will be available soon for the Sharjah New Title Showcase at newtitleshowcase.com.  For more information on the fair itself, visit http://www.swbf.gov.ae/english/bookfair2007.html.  

After months of behind the scenes work and taking in comments from our customers, we are happy to finally debut our new online registration system.  Our new, easy to use, system allows users to create an online account, become a CBE member, sign up for shows, edit titles for show catalogs, pay by credit card, sign up for advertisements and print out packing slips.  When you first create your account, you’ll be given a username and password that will allow you to login again and again to sign up for more shows or edit your information right online, so that it appears exactly as you want it.

The registration page is available right on our website at www.combinedbook.com, by clicking the red “Register Now” button.  2007 CBE members were already (or should very soon be) given their username and password and can already log in to the new system.

Beijing Recap
Fall Library Show Preview