Kristin Keith Award for Sales Rep of the Year

Jason Rice is the 2024  Sales Rep of the Year

Jason Rice is the 2024 Kristen Keith Sales Rep of the Year.

Booksellers across the NAIBA region are recognizing Jason Rice for his work and dedication to our independent market.  Jason Rice began his career in publishing at Bantam Doubleday Dell in Special Markets selling to Christian and Catholic titles to mail order customers. He transitioned to the Mass Merch Department at BDD. Since 2005 he has worked as a wholesale sales rep for Bookazine, Baker & Taylor and now with Ingram. In these years he has partnered with independent bookstores in the Mid-Atlantic and New England region, selling wholesale services, opening new stores and building relationships.    

“It’s a great honor to be named Sales Rep of the Year. This is a relationship business and I’m very happy to have booksellers and bookstore owners recognize my efforts, especially since the spirit of the award means so much to me,” says Jason. “Kristin Keith was one of the first people I met in the book business. She was both kind and generous, and her love of books was infectious. Kristin was a friend and in those first years as a sales rep, someone I looked up to.”

“Jason Rice has been a pillar of support for our indie bookstore since we opened last year. When I didn't even know what a rep was or did, he reached out and offered to visit our bookstore in person,” says Dr. Claire Van Den Broek, co-owner of Huxley and Hiro in Wilmington, DE. “He walked through the store with us, explained so much about how to both expand and slim down inventory, and patiently spent hours answering our questions about all aspects of the industry. We especially value his honesty and integrity; we can trust that he has our best interest at heart and isn't just trying to sell his company to us. Now that our store is thriving, Jason remains our go-to for any questions or concerns we might have about the industry, not just Ingram. His knowledge and patience make him an invaluable asset to the community.”

Rice will be honored at the NAIBA Annual Meeting on Sunday, August 11 at 9am at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, VA.

NAIBA Rechristens Sales Rep of the Year Award to Honor Kristin Keith in 2017

The New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association renamed the William Helmuth Sales Rep of the Year award to the Kristin Keith Sales Rep of the Year award in 2017.

The award was first given to Bev Chaney in 1987, and named after the beloved William Helmuth of Book Travelers. At the inception, NAIBA wanted to recognize the sales rep “who is the sort of person who does their homework all the time, is patient and tolerant of customers and colleagues, who makes mistakes from enthusiasm, then owns up to them.”

In 2013, Kristin Keith won this award for her dedication and enthusiasm for the book industry and book people. Sadly, we lost Keith to cancer in 2017. In kind, this same industry wants to immortalize her dedication, enthusiasm and heart to a new generation of book people through the renaming of the Sales Rep of the Year award.

Previous winners of the NAIBA Rep of the Year Award are: