The Massive Book Retailer Files for Chapter 11
For months, I have been hearing pundits speculate about the financial health of Borders bookstores. The large book retailer has been dealt a severe blow of a weak economy while trying to stay ahead of its counterparts. Amazon and Barnes and Noble have managed to regenerate their income flow with the Kindle and Nook devices as well as websites that are easy to use. Borders has struggled in this area and it shows—and word came down yesterday that they are going through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy to reorganize their finances and debt issues.
Borders President and CEO Mike Edwards made sure that he expressed that Borders is still in business with this email that was sent to its legion of customers yesterday:
And despite that, reports have surfaced that many Borders locations across the U.S. are closing as Borders tightens their reigns on spending and budget issues. This means that many Borders retailers in neighborhoods without another bookstore will no longer have a place to go buy books nearby.
The Borders in my area is the closest bookseller to me, so if our location is to close, I will have to go farther for books. Of course, I could always order online but that takes out the joy and fun of going to an actual bookstore with my family to pick out books—to smell the aroma of the ink and paper in the folds, to sit down at the table and read in a book environment—online retailers cannot offer that.
And if a mighty giant like Borders can fail, what does that mean for our smaller bookstores which are institutions in many of our cities? In my city of St. Louis, there are several local bookstores that I enjoy including Left Bank Books. If Borders can go under, I am fearful for the smaller bookstores.
I hope that Borders can rebound for their bankruptcy and remain open in as many locations as they can. Let’s keep our bookstores alive, big and small, by patronizing them and buying books in the store, not just online. If not, soon, there will be other bookstores that will have to follow Borders’ untimely lead.
I love bookstores, so I am worried Barnes & Noble will be the next to go and then there won’t be any bookstores left around where I live. I rarely actually buy anything at the actual stores though, and usually come home to buy books on Amazon, or I visit my new favorite free bookstore – the library. I’ve always wondered how Borders/Barnes & Noble can stay in business since their prices are at least 30% higher than Amazon.
I buy most of my books locally from an independent bookseller. I’m crazy about books, even if I had an ereader, I would never totally give up the tactile sensation of reading a printed book. Bookstores and libraries are like churches to me, places to be quiet, respectful and contemplative in. I know many people who buy most of their books on Amazon or at WalMart and I’m one of those freaky paranoid people so I’m afraid if we aren’t careful, soon those will be the only places to buy books. Borders should consider turning their stores into more of a book exchange, where they sell new books but also buy and sell used books also. There is a market for that and even those who purchase books online might go sell and trade them locally after reading them. They could also have a buy and sell for used ereaders.
It’s a shame if Borders goes. I always used to go there in my lunch breaks at work – it’s my escape from the stress. But yeah, it’s tough to stay in business when your margins are so low, and you’re selling things that are under $20 most of the time. Not to mention most people are moving to digital formats with the rise of the Kindle and iPad.
I’m a BIG public library fan but I do like bookstores for a get-a-way when doing homework. Makes the time spent grinding a bit nicer when there’s coffee and muffins. The Borders here in my city closed almost a year or two ago in the mall that went under as well (Simeon). I just purchased a Kindle mostly to avoid buying 7 printed textbooks. Yikes, right?! I still love handling the print copies of a good novel though so I’m going to continue to get mileage from my library card especially when music and movies are free too.