American Booksellers Association to close its White Plains headquarters

The American Booksellers Association (ABA), a national not-for-profit trade organization representing independently owned book retailers, announced it will be closing its White Plains headquarters office when its lease ends on Feb. 29.

The ABA has been based in White Plains for the past 12 years, but its staff has been working remotely since March 13, 2020. Going forward, it will use a Harrison address for mailing purposes while functioning as a virtual organization.

“The official office closing will significantly decrease ABA’s carbon footprint and allow the organization to use the money formerly spent on occupancy to support member services and programming,” said the organization in a press statement. “ABA’s remote work these past few years has allowed the organization to better serve its members who are located across the country — ABA staff now work from 10 different states — and enabled ABA to hire the best people for each open position, regardless of where they live. This hiring flexibility has also helped make ABA a significantly more diverse organization.”

The ABA subleased much of the office space for 2023, and the organization added its departure from White Plains office will have no impact on staff or members.