• Welcome to BookAndReader!

    We LOVE books and hope you'll join us in sharing your favorites and experiences along with your love of reading with our community. Registering for our site is free and easy, just CLICK HERE!

    Already a member and forgot your password? Click here.

Borders bordering on bankruptcy

I was watching the first day of "closing time" period yesterday, near my place in New Jersey. Most books were selling at 20% discount. The line to the counter was very long; people were buying.

Ludwik
.
 
The Borders near me is closing up in April. Having worked there this past holiday season, I have my issues with the place but overall I had fun there. I'll miss the relaxed atmosphere and friendly staff.
 
This is the continuing end of an era. In a few more decades we'll tell our kids about the stores that used to exist, dedicated to books, and music CDs and albums that we used to once peruse on cold winter's evenings...

I do get a little depressed having seen many a chain bookstore close here in the U.K., including several I used to frequent, but also have to remind myself that it was always often cheaper to buy from Amazon, and that sentiment doesn't make for a pragmatic business approach (or a healthy bank balance). I often wonder though honestly who can afford to buy from these shops exclusively. From someone who like most of you reads alot, buys lots of books old and new, online is often much, much cheaper.

In the U.K. I bought a book from Borders in London once I needed for an IT networking course I was doing and didn't have time to order from Amazon (or didn't think I did) it was £23 more than it would've cost me on Amazon!

The one book store that I would be really sad to see close would be the Waterstones store on Piccadilly. It's like a kind of heaven to me, and I do actively try to buy a few books when I am there. Many a Christmas Eve, or days before Christmas, I've spent scouting from floor to floor looking for last minute gifts... But I have to ask myself again - will I always be able to afford to do that, and is atmosphere enough in these things?
 
We don't have B&N here. Perhaps they should open a B&N store here. But maybe not, since they have their webstore to back them up.
 
I live in Houston and half of Border Bookstores closed here

Some say Borders is suffering because people read less now than in the past. I disagree. As someone else wrote, Barnes and Noble would also suffer, if this were a correct explanation.

Ludwik Kowalski (see Wikipedia),

the author of two FREE ON-LINE books. Links are at:

Diary of a former Polish communist; two free books on-line

P.S.
One of these books, my autobiography, was available at some Borders stores, five years ago. But it did not sell well and I decided to make it freely available online.
=======================================
 
Back
Top