Applications will open October 13 for the second cohort of BincTank, the Book Industry Charitable Foundation's business incubator pilot program designed to increase equity in bookstore ownership by supporting entrepreneurs from historically underrepresented communities.
For the program, Binc is specifically looking to support BIPOC entrepreneurs and retail bookselling businesses that are physically located in their respective communities. To qualify, stores must either be yet to open or have opened no earlier than July 1, 2024. Bookmobiles, pop-up stores, and traditional bricks-and-mortar storefronts are eligible models, as are stores that want to transition from one of those models to another. The stores must also be in the U.S. or a U.S. territory.
The members of the first BincTank cohort were announced in March and graduated in August. Following the three-year pilot period, BincTank will examine results and decide how to proceed.
Applications will be open from October 13 to November 3, and will be available here.