Angel Wings Bookstore Wins Free Year of IndieCommerce

American Booksellers Association members who attended one of the 2019 fall regional trade shows had the opportunity to enter a promotion for one free year of IndieCommerce (a total value of $1,425) by submitting an IndieCommerce contract. The winner of the 2019 promotion was Angel Wings Bookstore in Stem, North Carolina.

Mandy Harris, owner of Angel Wings, told Bookselling This Week that when she decided to go ahead with her dream of opening a bookstore, she wanted to do it the right way. “To me, that means using reliable systems,” she said. “I heard good things about IndieCommerce, and when I saw the promotion, I saw it as something that would help me through the first year, which can be a little rough.”

So far, she added, the service has been “fantastic.” Said Harris, “IndieCommerce support is always there to help in any way they can.”

The store began working with IndieCommerce on its website on September 30, said ABA’s Chanthee Keokhaw. The IndieCommerce team worked with Harris on the site’s basic configuration, which included setting up a display module for the ABA Indie Next Lists; default pages for the store’s privacy policy, return policy, help, and hours/directions; adding copyright information and an accessibility message in the footer; adding a front page book list; and adding basic menu items such as my account, log out, browse books, and events calendar. Harris also enabled other features for her site, including Hummingbird e-books, coupons, and abandoned cart messages, which remind shoppers of the purchases they were considering.

The site officially launched on October 22, after Harris participated in a two-hour IndieCommerce training session that covered topics such as order processing, shipping quotes, and pricing tools.

The rest of this year, Harris said, will be focused on learning more about IndieCommerce. Said Harris, “I want to try to make my site the best it can be for my business.”

IndieCommerce and IndieLite are ABA’s e-commerce platforms for independent bookstores. Booksellers who would like more information about these services can email [email protected].