B&N closes store in Manhattan. Customers confuse bookstores with libraries

I rarely go to those big Chapters but I always feel guilty sitting around treating it like a library. I always think of that Toronto bookstore, This Ain't The Rosedale Library.

 

I would guess e-readers, the general economy and most bookstores' large selection of shit has more to do with B&N's demise than comfy chairs.

 

Books may be a loss leader, but you don't need four stories of NYC commerical space to make $3.85 on a $4.00 latte

 

Reminds me of a Seinfeld episode where Jerry is doing his stand-up routine and is discussing how any person can just walk in, get a library card, and can take books out for free, and that the library trusts that they will bring it back. The joke is that how many places do you know would do something like that.

 

Bingo. When you're low on cash, you look for good free things to do. Going to B&N is one of those great free things.

One note about the coffee... B&N only brews Starbucks coffee-- it's not a Starbucks in the store, right? I got that when I asked them for my special drinks-- made my special way, and they said, "We're not a Starbucks, okay?"

So I started hitting up Starbucks and taking it to B&N, which I guess is the ultimate insult.

 

The Rosedale Library is on borrowed time ever since it moved from Church Street to the Kensington Market.

 

Yes, they technically make money on the coffee, but they also dedicate lot of square footage to the Cafe. (Especially in this particular store. The cafe & magazines make up just about the entire fourth floor.)

In retail, it's all about sales per square foot. If you read the Trader Joe's article/thread, that was one of the main points. By having fewer items, they can have a smaller store (than Whole Foods or others) and they have greater per square foot sales. (And they can also negotiate better prices because they move more of each individual SKU, but that's another story.)

Those Cafes do not make enough money per square foot to make money on their own, let alone to carry a huge store. And their stores are always big and in great (expensive) locations.

And yes, they serve Starbucks, but they are owned & operated by B&N and use different espresso machines. (Most have Melitta machines. Some have machines by Schaerer. I think they've replaced almost all of the old La San Marco traditional machines. Starbucks own stores use machines by Thermoplan.)

Lastly, bookstores are a great place to waste time. My ex and I used to go to the store on 82nd street that is mentioned in the article all the time. When you're broke & living in a studio apartment, taking a walk & reading magazines for free is a night out.

Now, I might grab a couple of books and read the first chapter in the store to see if I like it before buying it. That was the whole purpose of the Cafe. Get people in, and while they may have walked in without planning to buy anything, they walk out having spent $50.00 on books that they browsed while drinking their cup of coffee.

But now, folks just use the store for research and buy online or download an e-book.

B&N and Borders are screwed. I don't service either of their Cafe's espresso machines, and with the way they're going, won't look to add them as an account.

But there are going to be a lot of expensive espresso machines floating around as they close stores.

 

If the World's Biggest Bookstore had comfy chairs and coffee people may have camped there for months.

 

I never adapted to the "friendly" bookstores after growing up in a world where the newsstand owner would yell, "Hey, this ain't no liberry" if you spent more than 10 seconds with a magazine opened.

 

Borders' CEO just resigned. The same CEO that had just taken the position about a year ago. That's now three CEOs for Borders in the last year. And about 5-6 in the last five years.

The last two CEOs have gone on to A&P corporate, which isn't exactly gushing money.


Also, it can't be a good thing to be giving your exiting CEO more than $4 million as he leaves.

 

That's fantastic. My world as well. Always show up in July for the football preview mags. As I grew older, those interests shifted to "other" sections.

 

Exactly, that's what I was trying to get at in one of my posts earlier.