Eileen Dengler is Going Out to Play

After decades dedicated to the book industry, Eileen Dengler, Executive Director of the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association, as well as President of the Professional Booksellers School, will go fly a kite instead of logging into Zoom. Retirement from NAIBA will be in December 2026. Graduation from the Professional Booksellers School will happen in 2027.

Dengler has enjoyed her work immensely, saying, “I can’t believe I got paid to do what I love.” Dengler started in the book industry at the American Booksellers Association in 1984. She was Director of Meetings & Conventions, responsible for all aspects of the ABA Annual Convention along with the Association’s extensive education calendar. She was responsible for the growth of the ABA Convention, getting it on the top ten list of events by size in the nation.

When ABA sold the convention to Reed Exposition, Dengler was Director of Convention Services at the New York Convention & Visitors Bureau, and then founded Reading Enterprises, an association and meetings management firm. In her own firm, she has worked for the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association, the Southern California Children’s Booksellers Association, The Sleepy Hollow Book Festival on their inaugural book festival, the Harvard Square Book Festival on their inaugural book festival. She also managed many associations and conventions outside of the book industry.

Her ten years with ABA and 26 years with NAIBA have been her most fulfilling. At both associations, she has creatively solved problems, built strong relationships, and was instrumental in their growth. Her passion for improving the lives of booksellers inspired her to create the Professional Booksellers School in 2020 with the full support of NAIBA.

Dengler’s next projects include finishing the many manuscripts and stories that call to her from notebooks and Google Drives; reading novels in the morning; and continuing to help the book industry if called upon. She also plans to lose track of time, get lost in thought, and play with her grandbabies every single day.

For those who covet the NAIBA position that Dengler is leaving, you may find more information here, and the application form here.