Quote:
Originally Posted by Apache
If I had a local B&N I could put in a jewelry repair nook.
I was in Atlanta a couple of weeks ago and went to a B&N. The upstairs section used to be all fiction and a children's section. There used to be approximately 10 rows of shelves of general fiction in the center with the others on the walls. Now general fiction is two and a half rows and most of the space is taken up with toys and crap.
Apache
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B&N was a great place back in the 90's and 00's, but they forgot what made B&N so good, i.e. the experience. It was a place for people who love books. You could go and either buy or order any book that was in print. They had knowledgeable clerks who could steer you in the right direction. You could buy some books, get a cup of coffee and settle down and read. They had a pretty good customer rewards system in place as well. Adding music and movies to the mix didn't change the experience, but when they started adding toys and games, then it became less inviting to their core customers.
They really had a legit shot in the ebook market with the nook, their problem was they saw that as two separate business, when the two business should have complemented each other. I should have been able to scan in a title in the physical store and it pop up in the ebook store if they had it. If it was part of a series, they could have shown the other books in the series, or other books by that author under the book you scanned.
Look how Apple has their Apple store app integrated with the physical Apple store. I can order something on line, and pick it up at the Apple store a couple of hours later. I can pick up something in the store, scan it via the apple store app, pay for it and walk out, all without having to wait in line.
More than anything, their failure was they lost touch with their customers.