What We Do
The Book Industry Charitable (Binc) Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that coordinates charitable programs to strengthen the bookselling and comic retailing communities. Established in 1996, the core program provides assistance to bookstore and comic shop owners and their employees who have a demonstrated financial need arising from severe hardship and/or emergency circumstances. Since its inception, the organization has provided over $14 million in financial assistance and scholarships to more than 12,000+ people. Support for the Foundation’s programs and services comes from all sectors of the book and comic industries and beyond.
Our Mission.
The Book Industry Charitable Foundation’s mission is to strengthen the bookselling and comic retailing communities through charitable programs that support employees, owners, and their families. The Foundation was imagined and built by booksellers and proudly continues to be their safety net. It is our vision to be a caring community of book and comic people.
Our History
It began in 1996 when booksellers at Borders Group, Inc. had a vision: to start a nonprofit foundation with the purpose of helping bookstore employees in need.
Their wish was to have an ongoing method for booksellers to help each other.
From its beginning, as the Borders Group Foundation, funding was provided by company executives, individual employee payroll contributions, and donations from publishers and vendors. In 2011 following the liquidation of Borders, the organization was renamed the Book Industry Charitable (Binc) Foundation.
At this time the scope of the Foundation expanded to assist any qualifying employee or owner of a brick-and-mortar bookstore or comic shop within the U.S.
