Cafe con Libros, Bk Event Partnership Agreement.
Thank you for agreeing to partner with us on an event.
This agreement outlines our ideas of what we hope our partnership will look like and accomplish.
Our Philosophy:
We believe author events are a critical part of the bookstore ecosystem. Hosting events accomplishes many goals including but not limited to bringing community together, unveiling the writing process, celebrating the courage and audacity of authors and platforming books we both believe in.
We see events as a synergetic partnership with each of us playing a role. However, it’s important that we agree the author is primarily responsible for drawing the crowd. This is especially true for debut authors. In the absence of name recognition, they’re dependent on family, friends and their online following.
Cafe con Libros will only support events that are aligned with our mission and values. We hope, however, can’t guarantee that our choices will resonate with our community.
This document aims to set boundaries and expectations to ensure our partnership is a success.
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Considerations for Partnership:
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Over our seven years of hosting and supporting events throughout the city, we've learned about the challenges to successful events:
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On any given day in NYC, there are an impressive amount of events competing for attention
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Cafe con Libros exists in a social environment consisting of over 15 bookstores other cultural institutions all of which are also hosting events including book events
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Social media numbers does not equate to engagement or guarantee success
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​Pathways to Partnerships:
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Book Seller: We're simply onsite to sell books. We are not part of planning, marketing or recruiting for the event. Given the public commuter culture of NYC, we prefer to have the books delivered directly to the space. This includes corporate and private events.
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Host: We cover the event planning from A-Z. We secure the space. Create social media graphics. Market. In collaboration with the publicist and author, draft a run of show, order books and emcee the event.
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Book Fairs/Holiday Markets: With direction, we curate the list of books, arrange for their purchase and sell books at the fair.
Event Space:
The Cafe con Libros, Bk bookstore and coffee shop is ideal for small intimate events. The space is located in Crown Heights, Brooklyn and comfortably seats 15-20 people.
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We suggest using the space for debut authors without a strong following. Please note, due to the limited capacity of the bookstore, we rarely offer complimentary tickets. Please contact the event coordinator with request.
For events larger than 20, we have two additional options:
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Cafe Calaca: Brooklyn, NY.
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30-40
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Latine-Owned
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Indoor and Outdoor Seating
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Grand Street Healing, Brooklyn, NY.​​
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30-40
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Open space
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Cushioned floor seating
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Calming presence, yoga studio aura
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​Ann’s & Holy Trinity Church: Brooklyn, NY.
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75-450+ people
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Sanctuary Style. Includes a stage.
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Separate room for events of 0-100
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Centrally Located
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Aesthetically Stunning
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Green room
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First Unitarian Society of Brooklyn: Brooklyn, NY.
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75-450+ people
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Sanctuary Style. Includes a stage.
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Centrally Located
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Aesthetically Stunning
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Separate signing room
Tickets:
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Cafe con Libros believes book events should be accessible to all. To that end, we offer a limited amount of free tickets to all of our events.
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Community Offering: Free
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General Admission: $5.00
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Bundled: General Admission + MSRP of Book + Tax
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Signed Book Only: MSRP + Tax
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Complimentary tickets are available for events held at larger spaces. Please inform the events coordinator of the name prior to the event date.
Tickets and Cancellations:
In the instance the event is scheduled to be in Cafe con Libros, Bk., we require 15 tickets sold; 10 of which must be bundled to move forward.
You can expect a ticket sale report once per week. One week prior to the event, you’ll receive another check in with numbers. At this point, if tickets sales have not improved, we may initiate a conversation around cancellation. Four days prior to the event, if ticket sales have not reached the agreed upon amount, we reserve the right to cancel the event.
This policy applies for all events. Half of all tickets of the agreed ticket sales goal must be bundled for the event to continue.
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Marketing:
Cafe con Libros, Bk is willing to create all marketing social media assets. To accomplish this, we will need pictures of the author and conversation partner.
We will also need the social media handles of the author, conversation partner, publisher and imprint.
Our commitment to marketing is as follows:
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Send to our newsletter at a minimum of two times.
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Post on IG stories every 3-5 days.
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Post on IG grid with the author and conversation partner as collaborators.
We expect the author and conversation partner to:
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In the case either or both have e-mail list, send the event out on at least two separate occasions
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Repost IG stories their tagged in
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Tag CCL in at least two posts which we will repost
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Accept our collaboration
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Conduct personal outreach to family, friends, colleagues, etc to attend the event
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Suggested Marketing Strategy:
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Begin marketing 2-3 months prior to the event
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Post event graphic to social media platforms
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Post in stories 1-3x per week
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Post an audiobook sample
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Post a video of you introducing yourself and/or discussing the book
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Reach out to influencers to promote the book and the event
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Contact the publisher to post on their social media platforms
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Send out to newsletters 1-3x
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In concert, reach out to local media
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Invest $15-$20 in an IG ad
Event Time and Structure:
Out of an abundance of respect for our staff and event space partners, it’s important that we hold to the agreed upon time of the event.
Cafe con Libros will provide the run of show (ROS) 3-7 days prior to the event. The ROS outlines the proposed structure of the event. Event collaborators are free to make adjustments that fit within the agreed upon schedule and respect the boundaries of the space. Our goal is to finalize the ROS 72 hours prior to the event to give our staff adequate time to adjust. Day of changes must be sent to our event coordinator via text.
In the case a conversation partner is not able to attend, we ask the publisher/publicist/author to generate 3-5 questions to guide the author in a conversation with the audience.
Book Signing:
We support and even encourage authors to sign books. Given the tight schedule, concerns about COVID and the capacity of our staff, we:
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Do not allow personalization
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Build in pre-sign time
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Pre-flap books
In most cases, all of the above are non-negotiable. However, we are open to discussing.
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The author must be willing to sign copies of the book for our brick and mortar stock.
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Events with an expected attendance of 250+, we ask that the publisher arrange for the books to be signed prior to shipping.
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Documenting the Event:
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Cafe con Libros is in partnership with several photographers who have extensive experience in documenting large events. We ask that they capture 3-5 pictures and a short video clip for social media. All parties involved have the right to use the final product to market, advertise the work and on websites. The final product should only be used with the best intentions and in good faith. All parties involved must credit the photographer/videographer will provide the final product.
If you which to explore a partnership, please inform the events coordinator. We will also present this as a possibility.
Riders:
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We are happy to comply with riders within reason. We reserve the right to decline specific or all aspects of a rider that does not align with our values and/or is not practical.
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We encourage you to read and carefully consider this agreement prior to moving forward. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.
By agreeing to move forward with an event, we assume that you have read and consent to working with us under the established boundaries.
- team, cafe con libros, bk.