Last week, Barnes & Noble started selling items like rugs and cooking utensils on its website. ”If shoppers are buying cookbooks from bn.com, it’s natural to offer them cooking supplies at the same time; if shoppers are buying new baby books, it’s natural to offer them baby supplies as well,” said John Foley, B&N’s president of eCommerce. That sounds reasonable enough, but the reality behind the move is that B&N may have no choice but to try something, anything.
With its new online endeavor — which will include five new shopping categories: Home and Gift, Consumer Electronics, Arts and Crafts, Toys and Games and Baby — B&N is tiptoeing into the backyards of Amazon and eBay, the two online sellers that have virtually dominated Internet retailing for years.
Kavaler says that the move is necessary. ”Just books ain’t enough,” he says. And he’s mildly optimistic it can work: “[Barnes & Noble] isn’t doing anything particularly stupid,” Kavaler says. “And that’s all you can ask.”
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