Here is the current list of sponsorship benefits. We are always looking for more services and perks that we can offer sponsors while, at the same time, we occasionally need to modify or eliminate benefits if the cost to us changes or gets too high. Our goal with all benefits is to provide something of value to our sponsors that either costs us nothing (i.e. preferred seating at author events), or that we can offer at a reasonable but still slightly profitable rate (i.e. our sponsor T-shirts, which cost us around $15.50 on average, usually retail for $22, and which we sell for $18).
Sponsorship benefits in brief (see below for more details):
(1) Reserved seating at author signings
(2) The ability to rent the bookstore before or after hours for private events at our cost
(3) The ability to purchase exclusive Borderlands-sponsor-branded merchandise, like wine, apparel, messenger bags, and more, that is not available to the public
(4) Access to sponsors-only special events with authors & other speakers, including writing workshops, food and beverage tasting events, and presentations
(5) Access to general office equipment and services when the bookstore is open
(6) Package acceptance service
(7) Invitations to our quarterly sponsors-only parties
(8) Free advance reading copies of books
(9) Invitations to private book sales
(10) Out-of-print book searches
(11) Free movie passes
(12) Mylar library covers for your hardcover dust jackets
(13) Satellite events
(14) Buying used books
Sponsor Benefit Details:
(1) Reserved seating at author signings - Sponsors can reserve seats in the front rows for our author events, up to 2 seats per sponsor per event. Just email sponsors@borderlands-books.com at least 24 hours in advance to reserve. (Unclaimed seats will be released when the event starts.)
(2) The ability to rent the bookstore before or after hours for private events at our cost - You can rent the bookstore for private events. Imagine having the whole place essentially for yourself and your friends for a few hours! The charge for this varies based on the type of event but will be in the range of $25 to $125 per hour with one added hour post-event for clean up. The event must take place outside of usual work hours (which are noon to 8 pm for the bookstore). If you're interested, just drop Alan a line at abeatts@borderlands-books.com, give a call, or stop by to talk with Alan about the details.
(3) The ability to purchase exclusive Borderlands-sponsor-branded merchandise, like wine, apparel, messenger bags, and more, that is not available to the public - We have offered Borderlands Sponsor branded t-shirts, bottles of Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon from Pat Paulson Vineyards (with a gorgeous Oroborous label designed by sponsor Michelle Rapp), and custom sponsor bags from San Francisco's Rickshaw Bagworks. We have even more cool stuff planned.
(4) Access to sponsors-only special events with authors & other speakers, including writing workshops, food and beverage tasting events, and presentations -- We've already had a fantastic Scotch tasting with Mary Robinette Kowal, and we have a presentation on the New Horizons Mission to Pluto scheduled for the end of October. We're also in the process of planning writing workshops with Seth Harwood and other prominent local writers.
(5) Access to general office equipment and services when the bookstore is open - sometimes you just need a fax machine or a stapler, a few photocopies, or 15 minutes on a real computer. These services, and any other general office services we can provide, are available to our sponsors when the bookstore is open.
(6) Package acceptance service - Living in San Francisco has plenty of challenges and one of them is where to have packages delivered. Most apartments only have a mail slot or small mail box. If you work during the day, you're often out of luck when it comes to getting parcels delivered by UPS or even the US Mail. At the suggestion of one of our sponsors, we'd be happy to accept delivery of your packages and hold them for you to pick up. If you'd like to do that, please use this address -
<your name>
c/o Borderlands Books, Sponsor
866 Valencia St.
San Francisco CA 94110
Also, please drop us a line at sponsors@borderlands-books.com, to let us know to expect a package for you. When it arrives, we'll give you a call. Please, if it's going to take you more than 48 hours to pick up the package, make specific arrangements with us to hold it for a longer time.
(7) Invitations to our quarterly sponsors-only parties - we throw great parties, if we do say so ourselves! We typically have free advance reading copies (or finished books) for the taking from our publisher supporters, tons of fabulous food and drink courtesy of everyone (parties are potluck and BYOB), and lots of great new friends waiting to be made! We also have fun raffles, behind-the-scenes tours, live music and other sorts of entertainment.
(8) Free advance reading copies of books - Advance Reading Copies or ARCs are inexpensively bound softcover copies of a book that are sent out by publishers to booksellers and reviewers before a book is on sale. We get a constant stream of them and donate most of them. But, before they are donated, we keep them on a shelf behind the counter for staff to take if they like. Anytime you're in the store, you're welcome to ask to take a look at what we have. If something looks interesting to you, please take it home. There are only two things that we ask: first, please do not sell it after you've read it. You're welcome to give it away to someone else but selling it deprives the author of their royalty, which is a not-nice thing to do. Second, please limit yourself to just taking one per visit so that other sponsors can have a chance at them.
(9) Invitations to private book sales - As a sponsor, you'll get first access to private book sales, certain collectible titles, and sneak peeks when we purchase large collections.
(10) Out of print book searches - Typically, we're happy to order almost any book that's in print for any of our customers, sponsor or not, regardless of the genre. But we go a step further for sponsors: if you're seeking an out-of-print book, we'll find it and order it for you, for a small service charge. Email sponsors@borderlands-books.com for details.
(11) Free movie passes - We frequently get free promotional passes to movies. We will be giving our sponsors first chance at them via our sponsors' Twitter feed @bl_sponsors. We're sorry that it's not practical to send out emails for this. Free tickets can be reserved by email and are strictly first-come, first-served. Speaking of that Twitter feed, we'll also be using it to offer other, limited-quantity promotional items as they turn up. So, if you're a Twitter user, you might want to follow that feed.
(12) Mylar library covers for your hardcover dust jackets - we're happy to put a protective mylar library cover (we call them Brodart covers, which is the name of the company that makes them) on any hardcover with a dust jacket that you buy from Borderlands, for free. Just ask at the counter when you purchase your books. Please note that the process is a little time-consuming, so we may have to ask you to wait just a bit if we're busy.
(13) Satellite Events - We're also working on "satellite" events in some other major cities for sponsors who don't live in the Bay Area. Cities that we're considering are Chicago, New York, Boston, and Austin. If you live in one of those cities or would be interested in traveling there for a neat, Borderlands-thing, please let us know and we'll make sure you hear about it (if and when it happens).
(14) Buying Used Books - Borderlands is almost always accepting used books for trade, and setting up appointments to buy used books for cash, from sponsors, even when we're not currently accepting books from the general public. If you're a sponsor and you've got used books to trade, you can drop them off anytime we're open. The staff will sort through them and give you a call to let you know your credit balance in a few days, and then you'll have two weeks to pick up any declined books. If you'd like to sell books for cash, just call or email to make an appointment with Jude, 415 824-8203 or sponsors@borderlands-books.com. (As a favor, if you're going to drop off a large number of books, please call or email us first to make sure we've got space to accommodate them.)
