The 16th annual Chicago International Remainder and Overstock Book Exposition (CIROBE) was held last weekend, focusing on vendors and buyers who service the bargain-book segment of the industry.

“With all of the consolidation that has taken place in the business in the recent years, you'd think that there would be fewer exhibitors here-but the number of tables and exhibitors has grown exponentially over the last five years,” said Marshall Smith, CIROBE's co-founder. The growth has included an increasing presence of Christian publishers and book discounters on the show floor, he said.

Traffic at the Chicago Hilton was “a bit slower than we would like on Saturday, but this was our biggest year ever when it came to presales,” said Zondervan sales representative Jessica Brown. “We like this show because it's great for building relationships as well as for making sales.”

Bill Westfall, vice president of sales and marketing at Barbour Publishing, said: “I think it's busier for us this year than last year. I had a nice day writing orders the first day of the show.”

“Bibles have been really big for us this year,” said Barry Baird, executive director of Thomas Nelson's Bargain and Remainder Books division. “We've increased our display presence here this year, and it's given customers more space to look at product. We're seeing strong sales at this show.”

“We've shopped here, buying for our Web site,” said George Brainerd of Internet discounter Christian Book Clearinghouse. “This is our first year as a vendor. We didn't know what to expect, but we've been pleased with our results here.”

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