Midwest Indie Bookstore Roadmap

Now in its sixth year, The Midwest Indie Bookstore Roadmap is a promotional tool that both celebrates the thriving independent bookstores in our region and sends customers through their doors.

• The artist Kevin Cannon creates a custom image of each of our member stores and features them on a beautiful roadmap-inspired drawing of our region
• On the back of the map, we feature promotions from our industry partners as well as a bookstore directory
• We send 80,000 copies to our bookstores for free, to distribute to their customers for free on Independent Bookstore Day and thereafter as long as supplies last
• We host a contest to give away cash prizes to customers. See their posts on social at the hashtag #bookstoreroadmap

• You help us proudly celebrate indie bookstores in our region and get more customers through their doors
• We help you get your message into the hands of the most dedicated book-buying population in the Midwest: 80,000 indie bookstore customers

• The satisfaction that you helped spread 80,000 print roadmaps across the Midwest and beyond (anyone living outside of the Midwest can request a map)
• Print ad in in 80,000 print roadmaps
• Books featured in print ads are pulled into an Edelweiss collection and sent to our 230+ bookstores as an ordering tool
• Dedicated social media posts across our most popular channels
• Permanent placement on our Roadmap Partner page

Half Panel
(3.25" H x 4.15" W)

Quarter Panel
(3.25" H x 1.95" W)

Getting started

• When you join MIBA, your store is automatically put into a queue for our artist Kevin Cannon to draw. There's no need to do anything since he works with images of your store online, but if you want to share any special images to assist him, let us know
• We produce and print the roadmap to be shipped to your store the week before Independent Bookstore Day, celebrated on April 29
• We release each year's new store art to owners before Independent Bookstore Day, so you will be able to use this art in your promos and help drive traffic to your store
• We also release additional creative graphics for all stores to use to promote the map to your customers
• Give away the roadmaps to your customeres for free starting on Independent Bookstore Day!

When your art is complete, you will get a free png. In addition, you can request two upgrades to the basic art.

• Order a vector package
• Order a designed badge with additional features
• Both are available here

"We keep the roadmap up on the wall next to our cash register and customers are always drawn to it! Kids (and adults) love to find their hometowns and favorite bookstores. Book lovers are delighted to be able to take a copy of the map.
I always tell them it's the best way to travel and they agree. Customers often tell us they found us from the map."

--Gwen Danfelt, Drury Lane Books (Grand Marais, MN)

"The roadmap is the perfect way to promote independent bookstores in the region and we have run out of them each year. Our customers say they love seeing how many stores they can visit, and we’ve heard that some have it up on their walls. We had to put our framed map away when we ran out since customers were asking for a copy! I also love to use the graphics from the map, especially the custom graphic of our store, which we use in a lot of different, unique promotions."

--Carol Blizzard Dunn, Northwind Book & Fiber (Spooner, WI)