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Borders biggest problem has always been poor management and lack of vision. It was the first large chain in the U.S. to combine books, music, and cafe, and then, true to color, mismanaged the combination so badly that B&N imitated and quickly surpassed Borders.
When I worked for Borders more than a decade ago, it was obvious that it was dying. Management in Michigan would send weekly bulletins telling us in upstate New York what books to place where, which had to hit the customer in the face as the customer entered, which could be displayed face out, etc., and then sent secret staff to verify compliance. Failure to comply meant firing or no bonus.
The problem was that local tastes in upstate New York varied from taste in Ann Arbor, Michigan, yet we couldn't stock the store or create displays that catered to local reading habits. People would walk in and walk out without buying.
Is Borders salvageable? Yes, it is because the brand has value, but it needs a completely different type of management, something it won't get because the the "owners" think that what is good for Boeing management style is good for Borders management style; that is, there is no recognition of the management style differences required because the book market doesn't work like a normal market.
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