Southern Territory Associates has been representing book publishers in the South for over forty years. Founded in 1976, STA employs five sales reps, covering the twelve states in the southeast and southwest. Accounts include independent retail bookstores, regional chains, book trade and library distributors and wholesalers, university bookstores, museum shops, children's bookstores and specialty retailers and wholesalers.

In 2002, employees of STA purchased the company from founding partners Ed Springer and James Shepherd, in order to continue providing excellent service for publishers and booksellers in the territory. The current owners of STA are Geoff Rizzo and Angie Smits.

Geoff Rizzo joined Southern Territory Associates in 1993. Geoff's bookselling career began in 1988 when he went to work as an independent book rep with his father's company, Frank Rizzo & Associates, in the Mid-Atlantic region. Geoff covers Florida (excluding the Fla. Panhandle) and the Georgia coast.

Angie Smits joined STA in 1998. Based in North Carolina, she covers the Carolinas, Virginia and East Tennessee. She worked with Viking Penguin and Farrar, Straus and Giroux in New York from 1987-1997, in children's books, special sales and subsidiary rights.

Rayner Krause joined STA in 2001. Based near Dallas, he covers Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. Rayner was formerly a field sales rep for Ballantine and an independent bookstore owner as well as a bookstore buyer.

Tom Caldwell joined STA in 2012. Based in Kentucky, he covers Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia (excluding the Georgia Coast), the Florida Panhandle, Pensacola, Middle and Western Tennessee, and Chattanooga. Tom comes from a background of retail bookselling in several bookstores and has worked as both a house rep for University of California Press and Princeton University Press and as a commission rep.

Meighan Bell Larbi is responsible for sales to Ingram Book Company and American Wholesale Book Company/Books-A-Million. She is also Systems Manager for STA, maintaining and updating the STA database, preparing spreadsheets for key accounts and fielding customer service questions. Prior to joining STA, Meighan was Field Sales Manager for Harry N. Abrams. She has also been a bookstore manager for the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and for Barnes & Noble.