Wholesalers

So, this entry is dedicated to the work I've been doing to get the book into Barnes & Noble. In early March of this year, 2010, I sent off an inquiry to B&N about carrying our book "Wailoa & Kukui". On March 10th they sent a letter to the effect that they were on board and interested in selling our book in their online store as well as retail stores.
There were many steps that they required of us to make that happen. Lately the request is that we commit to a wholesaler, a company that provides B&N with their supply of books. B&N sells such a variety of titles, that they couldn't possibly contact each publisher individually to request more copies of certain titles, so a wholesaler becomes the contact. A wholesaler keeps stock on hand and fills the orders it receives from retailers like B&N.
Fortunately, B&N gave me a list of the wholesalers that supply their stores. I contacted each of them and so far have heard back from 2 of them, and it seems positive enough. Their is an application process very similar to that of Amazon.com. I just returned from the post office mailing off the packages containing our "sales pitch" including a copy of the book for their review.
What do I think will happen now?
Once they get the package for review, I believe that we will be required to sign up with them and begin flowing merchandise to their warehouses, B&N is closer than ever although realistically it will probably be around a month at the earliest before it will be on shelves. How cool would it be to have an author/illustrator signing event at B&N here in Vegas, when Aaron comes to town? And vice versa, when I get back to Hawaii in 2011?
Great prospects, still having fun in spite of all this kind of paper-WORK!