Since, well, let's just say for a really long time, we've been learning the ropes in the book business the old-fashioned way — by actually doing the work. We have been employees, business owners, publishers, and industry leaders.
After fulfilling his patriotic duty with a tour in the U.S. Navy, Alan Bernhard began his career as a graphic designer and typographer with U.S. Banknote and Pandick Press in Boston. He moved west to lead a magazine production department, which he then spun off into Argent Typographics, Inc. Argent acquired a nationwide reputation for excellence in design and expertise in the constantly evolving world of print and type technology. Alan served six years as Executive Director of the Publishers Association of the West, where he spearheaded unparalleled growth in the National Publishing Conference and Western Book Design Awards. Co-founding Boulder Bookworks in 2003, he continues to provide publishers with the insights built from his long career in book design and production.
Alan Stark worked in textbook sales for several years before he was trusted with progressively more responsibility at Westview Press, Colorado Associated University Press, and Fulcrum Publishing. He founded Travis Ilse, a publisher of travel guides, which he sold to Sasquatch Books. He served as Executive Director of the Rocky Mountain Book Publishers Association (predecessor to Publishers Association of the West). Moving to Seattle in the late 1990's, Alan joined Mountaineers Books as director of sales and marketing, but returned to Boulder as associate publisher of Mountain Sports Press, then a division of Time, Inc. In 2003 he formed Boulder Bookworks with longtime friend Alan Bernhard. He has served on numerous industry boards, including as a director and president of the Colorado Center for the Book.
Alex Goulder started out as a clerk in one of the mammoth book emporia that used to line midtown Fifth Avenue in New York, and he quickly worked his way up to manager and buyer. He later co-founded the company that published the widely acclaimed Common Reader book catalog, which he helped build into a thriving business. Moving to Boulder in 1992, he became acquainted with Alans Stark and Bernhard, and, even through a foray into the world of finance, he has remained in touch with them, recently joining their business as marketer and salesperson.