your questions answered. click the tabs below for our book fair frequently asked questions.
Do you have my dates available?
We work very hard to work with your preferred dates, however we do operate on a first come first served basis. Contact a sales rep as early as possible to schedule your preferred book fair dates.
What if I need to cancel, extend, delay, or change the dates of my book fair?
We understand that the unexpected sometimes happens. If you need to cancel, extend, delay, or change your book fair dates, please contact your sales rep as soon as possible. In rare cases the school may be responsible for reimbursing any marketing and/or shipping expenses.
How long should my fair run?
We have found that the best fairs last one week. Many schools set up their book fair on Friday afternoon so it is ready to open first thing Monday morning, then start packing up Friday around lunch time so it is ready for pick up Friday afternoon.
Do you have a minimum book fair sale?
Yes, due to the cost of shipping we have a minimum book fair sale of $4,000. We also offer mini book fairs that have a minimum sale of $1,000 and online book fairs that have no minimum.
What is the process and time frame for scheduling and holding a book fair with I55?
Throughout the process you will work with an I55 sale representative that is dedicated to helping you make this your best book fair ever! Here's what you can expect:
- 40+ days before the book fair - Schedule your book fair
Contact I55 with your preferred dates, then complete the Fundraiser Agreement to add your book fair to our calendar. - 1-3 weeks before the book fair - Generate excitement
I55 sends marketing material for you to use in promoting your fair. - 0-4 days before the book fair - Receive inventory
Depending on your distance from our warehouse, your book fair will be delivered by an I55 representative or a 3rd party shipping company. You will receive your book fair inventory and set up your book fair "store". - During the book fair you are responsible for all sales including the collection of monies and sales tax. You collect cash and check payments and later remit them to I55. The POS register we send processes credit card payments.
- 0-4 days after the book fair - Return inventory
Pack up the remaining inventory and I55 will arrange for it to be returned in the same manner it was delivered. - Within 10 days of receiving your book fair at our warehouse, I55 will send your final invoice showing your profit received and any monies owed from cash and check payments collected that need to be remitted to I55.
When will my book fair be delivered and picked up?
As we utilize a third-party freight forwarding company, your sales rep will communicate with you and the shipping company to schedule both delivery and pick up times that work with your schools business hours.
Delivery: This depends on your distance from our warehouse, however the books usually arrive in the middle of the week prior to the book fair (Wednesday or Thursday), unless you request otherwise.
Pick Up: Most schools have their book fair picked up on Friday afternoon (usually the last day of the book fair) or the following Monday. You will be responsible for packing your book fair into boxes, placing them on the pallet and wrapping the pallet with pallet wrap before the scheduled pick up time.
Who will deliver my fair?
Most often the book fairs are delivered using a third-party freight forwarding company. It will arrive packed in cardboard boxes on a wrapped pallet. You are responsible for receiving the pallet, moving the boxes into the school and setting up the products for display.
Do you have rolling bookcases?
At this time we do not have rolling book cases to display our products. The books arrive in cardboard boxes. You are responsible for removing the books from the boxes (save the boxes for return shipping) and finding a suitable location to display them. We do provide display containers for all our novelty items.
Who sets up the fair?
The books will arrive in cardboard boxes. You are responsible for removing them from the boxes (save all packing materials for return shipping) and setting them up for display.
You will need to supply your own tables to display your fair. Depending on the size of your school, we recommend a minimum of 10 8-ft tables.
Will there be affordable books at my book fair?
Yes! At our book fairs books are sold at their regular retail price. Your book fair inventory will include a wide range of books starting at $3.99.
What about special requests, required reading and summer books?
During the application process you will be asked to complete our Product Selection Questionnaire where you can include any special requests, required reading, or summer reading books you would like to have at your book fair. We do our best to fulfill your special requests based on title availability from our vendors.
How are the books displayed? Do they come on rolling carts?
The books arrive packed in cardboard boxes and labeled by category. You are responsible for unpacking the boxes and displaying the books on your own tables. All of our novelty items come with display bins. At this time we do not have rolling carts or bookshelves.
Is it easy to group the books by category or reading level?
The books are presorted by category before being packed into boxes. Each box is labeled with the category name so that you can organize the books before you even take them out of their boxes.
For a list of categories with target age range and category description, click here.
What type of items are considered "novelties"?
Novelties are all our non-book items (e.g. pencils, erasers, bookmarks, posters, etc.), books that you do not read (such as coloring books or journals) and books that contain stickers or toys.
How many books can I expect?
The final number of titles depends on the size of your school, your book fair projected sales and any specific requests. The average book fair receives around 800 different titles, with each title having 1-10 copies.
What are your book categories and what do they mean?
Our categories are listed below along with the general age range and a short description. Click the category name to view products in that category.
| CATEGORY | AGE RANGE | DESCRIPTION |
| FICTION-EASY CHAPTER BOOKS | 6 - 10 Years | Under 100 pages, short chapters and large font for kids just starting to read chapter books. Ex. Magic Tree House Series |
| FICTION-CHAPTER BOOKS | 8 - 12 Years | 100+ pages, longer chapters, medium font for kids reading independently. Ex. Ramona Quimby |
| FICTION-MIDDLE GRADE | 10 - 14 Years | 200+ pages, full-length chapters and regular font; content more appropriate for kids 10+. Ex. The Penderwicks |
| FICTION-TEEN | 13 - 17 Years | 200+ pages, full-length chapters and regular font; content more appropriate for teens. Ex. The Giver |
| LEVELED READERS | 4 - 8 Years | Guided reading with increasing levels of difficulty for those just starting to read. Ex. I Can Read Series |
| BOARD BOOKS | 1 - 4 Years | Books with thick cardboard-like pages. |
| STORYBOOKS | 3 - 8 Years | Read to me books with color illustrations. |
| CLASSICS | 12 - 18+ Years | Stories that have stood the test of time. Ex. Tom Sawyer, The Chronicles of Narnia |
| YOUNG CLASSICS | 7 - 12 Years | Stories that have stood the test of time for the younger reader. Ex. Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little |
| CHRISTIAN LIVING-KIDS | 4 - 12 Years | Bible storybooks, devotionals, etc. for kids. |
| CHRISTIAN LIVING-TEENS | 13 - 17 Years | Devotionals and spiritual development books for teens. |
| CHRISTIAN LIVING-ADULTS | Age 18+ | Christian parenting and spiritual development books for adults. |
| BIBLES | All Ages | The Word of God in various versions and formats for kids, teens, and adults. |
| HISTORY & BIOGRAPHY | 4 - 18 Years | Non-fiction books about historical events and people's lives. |
| SCIENCE & SPORTS | 4 - 18 Years | Non-fiction books about science and sports. |
| REFERENCE | 4 - 18 Years | Everything else! Joke books, LEGO books, cook books, world record books, poetry books, how-to books, etc. |
| BOXED SETS | All Ages | Boxed sets of the most beloved series. These make GREAT gifts! |
| SEASONAL | All Ages | Books specific to a season: Christmas, Easter, or Fall. |
| MEDIA | All Ages | Christian CDs and Christian DVDs |
| NOVELTY | All Ages | Novelties are all our non-book items (e.g. pencils, erasers, bookmarks, posters, etc.), books that you do not read (such as coloring books or journals) and books that contain stickers or toys. |
When will I receive my marketing/promotional materials?
We ship marketing & promotional materials about a month before your book fair. If you have not received it by then, please contact your sales rep.
What marketing/promotional materials do you provide?
We provide book fair posters, a banner, yard signs, and flyers for the students to take home.
May I promote my book fair on Facebook, Twitter, and/or my own website?
Absolutely! Current book fair admins can find all the graphics for our current theme and our logos on the admin homepage. Contact your sales rep if you need ideas for promoting your book fair. Don't forget to tag us @I55Fundraising!
How do you restock books if we sell out? What is the turn-around time?
We always do our best to make sure your school has enough products at your book fair. If you do sell out of a product you have two options:
Option 1: Continue selling the item through the register, thus pushing the inventory on hand number into the negative. IMPORTANT: You will need to keep and submit to I55 a written record of the student/parent who purchased the item, as well as the item name and ISBN or SKU.
Option 2: Send the parent to our online store to purchase the item. Be sure to give the parent your school's private book fair link that is set up with the free ship to school shipping option. Some schools choose to have a laptop opened to their I55 landing page at the check out so parients can easily order items not available at the fair.
After your fair is complete we will ship all the items sold in the negative as well as those sold online with the free ship to school option.
Do you have bags for check out?
Yes, we provide bags for check out.
Do you charge sales tax? What if my school is tax exempt?
Yes, your register will arrive already set up to add your local sales tax amount to the item price. Please contact your sales rep if your register is not adding sales tax, or if the tax rate is incorrect.
NOTE: Even if your school is tax exempt, the individual buyers at your book fair are not tax exempt. All transactions in your Shopify POS Go register will be charged sales tax. Do not manually remove the sales tax from a transaction.
Please contact your sales rep if you school or another tax exempt organization would like to purchase books under their tax exempt status.
I55 will remit the collected sales tax to the appropriate jurisdiction.
Your Book Fair sales, or any portion of your fair sales, can only be considered tax-exempt if your school is legally exempt from taxation and you have a current valid tax-exempt certificate containing a tax-exempt ID number for your school. Under most circumstances, even with proper documentation, only purchases made by your school with school funds for your school's use can be exempt from sales tax.
Do I need to provide cash for the registers, and if so, how much?
Yes. The Shopify POS Go s a credit card processor, but you may also accept cash or checks (made payable to your school). You may want to have a cash box or other type of place to put cash & checks you collect. I55 does not send cash boxes.
We generally recommend you have $100 per register in the below denominations. Of course, if you expect a large number of cash transactions, you may want more, or if you expect mostly credit card transactions, you won't need as much.
2 rolls of pennies ($1)
1 roll of nickles ($2)
1 roll of dimes ($5)
1 roll of quarters ($10)
22 1-dollar bills ($22)
8 5-dollar bills ($40)
2 10-dollar bills ($20)
Do you send a cash register? If so, how many?
Yes! We use Shopify POS GO as our POS system. They are lightweight, portable, easy to set up and user-friendly. Simply scan the bar code and the item is added to the sale. Please note: the Shopify POS GO is about the size of a smartphone and does not include a place to store cash/checks. You may want to have a cash box on hand for this purpose as I55 does not provide a cash box.
How many we send depends on projected sales, but usually we send 1-3 Shopify POS GO registers. And since the Shopify system is cloud based, we can turn any android or apple device into a register if the need arises. If you feel you need more that the number provided, please contact your sales representative.
Can our school get credit for online purchases?
Yes, all schools are set up with the ability for online sales. Contact your sales rep if you need your school's custom shop page link.
How do I spend my Book Bucks?
If your book fair inventory has not yet been shipped back to I55, you can scan the books you want to keep into the Shopify POS Go register and select "Book Bucks Invoice" as the method of payment. If your book fair is sold out of any titles you wanted to purchase with Book Bucks, please contact your sales rep.
If you have already returned your book fair inventory, you will need to send a list of ISBNs, Titles, and Quantities you wish to purchase to your sales rep. We have access to millions of books, so you are not limited to what is available on our website store, however you may want to start there and create a wish list to email to your sales rep. Your sales rep will confirm the availability of the books you want and apply your Book Bucks to your order.
How and when will I get paid?
When you sell books at your book fair you collect cash and check payments (credit card payments come directly to I55). After your fair you will receive an invoice from I55 for the cash and check payments you collected.
If you choose to earn cash commission, we deduct your cash commission earned from what you collected in cash and check payments, so the amount on the invoice is less than the amount of cash and check payments you collected. The difference is your book fair cash commission.
If you choose to earn book bucks, you will be invoiced for the full amount of cash and check payments you collected, but your book bucks will appear as a credit on your account to use toward your book purchase. You have up to 1 year to use your book bucks, after which we will convert the book bucks to cash commission and mail you a check.
How much will my school earn at our book fair, and do we earn cash or another reward?
With I55 you can choose if you want your fundraiser earnings in cash commission, book bucks, or a combination of both.
Cash Commission - If your book fair net sales total is $4000 or greater, you will earn 20% cash commission.
Book Bucks - You will earn 40% of the total net sales in book bucks. Book bucks can be spent at the end of the fair before books are returned, or they can remain on your account to be used to purchase books for up to 1 year. With book bucks you are not limited to a catalog or a specific vendor. If we can get the books you can use your book bucks to purchase it.
Do you ever discount your books?
We occasionally send discounted books to a book fair, in which case the books will be clearly marked with a discount sticker and the discounted price will ring up in the register.
The Shopify POS Go register system we use has an option to apply a discount to the sale. It is at the discretion of the Librarian or Book Fair Coordinator if you want to discount items for teachers or volunteers. However, please note that any items you choose to discount at the point of sale will not earn book fair cash or book bucks commission.
Do you have a monthly book club?
At this time we do not offer a monthly book club. This is on our list to do list and we hope to have it up and running sooner rather than later.
Do you know if your books are AR (Accelerated Reader by Renaissance Learning)?
Although we do not participate in AR, most of our Pre-K–8th grade books are listed on AR. You will see less of our 9th–12th grade books on AR.
Do you carry non-book items?
Yes, in addition to books we also carry Bibles, Christian CD's & DVD's, posters, journals, novelty items, and more. Additional products can be found on our website here.
What grade levels do you include?
We have books for all ages and reading levels from board books to Christian grand-parenting! You can browse our current available inventory here.
During the application process you will be asked to complete our Product Selection Questionnaire where you will be asked to indicate the grades that will attend your fair. We tailor the book fair inventory to each specific school so you can be sure you'll receive products you, your students, and their parents will love.
Can I purchase Ebooks or Audiobooks?
At this time we do not offer ebooks or audiobooks.
