What about Borders?

[artifact]

My most visible Borders got bulldozed while the ink was still drying on the bankruptcy papers. It seems a big economic and environmental waste to me whenever I go past the eyesore.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by sadievan

I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama don't take my Kodachrome away



Carol

LOL - Mama done took it away and left you an SD card.

[sadievan]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

LOL - Mama done took it away and left you an SD card.

My dad worked for Kodak for probably 35+ years til he died in 1975. It was a good company to its employees back then. Don't know how it is now.

Carol

[khunnylex]

It is a large bookstore, and I distributed the book.

[fjtorres]

I finally got around to checking out the site of the nearest Borders.
It was a relatively small one and located right next to the mall cineplex entrance so it's been repurposed as an upscale chinese restaurant.

[DuskyRose]

Ours wasn't empty all that long. It turned into a used book store that takes in books, DVD's, games and electronic devices for trade.

There's one like it a town away, but you can only use your trade-in credits for the same type of items you traded there. (Book credits for books, DVD's for DVD's, ect. ect.) This new one allows you to use your trade in credit on anything in the store, including 'new in box' stuff. I traded in a Kobo Touch I didn't like much and a few bags of books I didn't want and walked out with a new Nook Touch, unopened box. They sell used e-readers too, as well as some new-in-box.

A good thing I heard while there was that they hired all the staff from the Boarders that closed. I'm hoping they stay open. They seem to have people browsing all the time.

[petrucci]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

Kodak was basically a chemical company with expertise in film, although they did make a few low-end cameras. When digital cameras made film obsolete, Kodak's business was over. But this wasn't the kind of change that Kodak could have dealt with even if they had seen it coming. They weren't a *real* camera company, and they had no expertise in electronics. But not all old-guard companies were washed away in the flood - higher end camera companies (Canon, Nikon, Olympus) *were* able to compete in the digital area because their expertise concerning lenses and light still counted...they just needed to get the electronics from someone else [Canon and Nikon are best thought of as lens manufacturers who happen to sell cameras]. But they had always gotten the film from others, too. Electronic companies (Sony, Panasonic) were able to use their electronics background to get into the market, although for their better products they had to rely on old-school camera [lens] manufacturers for their products - I think Sony usesZeiss lenses and Panasonic uses Leica.

You will be surprised to find that Kodak is much more than a chemical company. In fact, Kodak built the first digital camera in 1975.

Originally Posted by brianj6

There's a Border's around my area in Chicago that's usually full (and I go at off times). I'm sorry to hear they're doing badly.

As is suggested by the above post, people are simply not buying books as frequently. This is why Borders is out of business.

My local Borders is now a golf store.

[Kumabjorn]

Now that we have a large selection of input, I notice that not a single Borders has been converted to a B&N store?
Were they too close to begin with? Are B&N apprehensive about expansion? With the rare exception of a permanent establishment most Borders seem to be empty or temporary event stores.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

Now that we have a large selection of input, I notice that not a single Borders has been converted to a B&N store?

In the case of the two former Borders locations I've been by since the closing one is about a mile from a B&N and the other about 3 miles so I can't see B&N grabbing either of those locations. Another location was basically across the street from a B&N (haven't been by there so don't know what has become of it).

[Rylon]

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

Now that we have a large selection of input, I notice that not a single Borders has been converted to a B&N store?
Were they too close to begin with? Are B&N apprehensive about expansion? With the rare exception of a permanent establishment most Borders seem to be empty or temporary event stores.

I don't know about other places, but B&N stores were often close (as in geographic proximity) around here in the bay area. For example, the Border's closest to where I live now was also down the street from a B&N. Same thing for when I lived in San Diego.

When I lived in Santa Cruz, Border's was on the same street (and within walking distance) of two other established and independent bookstores. If my experience is indicative, Border's was just over saturation.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

Now that we have a large selection of input, I notice that not a single Borders has been converted to a B&N store?
Were they too close to begin with? Are B&N apprehensive about expansion? With the rare exception of a permanent establishment most Borders seem to be empty or temporary event stores.

Word is 75% of the two chains overlapped so there was no gain there.

Of the rest, B&N had no great interest in the areas (or they would have moved in back when they were in over-reach mode). They did *try* to bid for about 30 or so of the stores (and inventory) *before* they got shut down. Once the stores got liquidated, trying to relaunch would be more complex.
http://money.msn.com/exchange-traded...d-cd0b1ea01fc7
Plus, B&N's own situation has degraded since the Borders liquidation, so they are probably lucky they weren't able to get the sites they wanted.

The story's not done, of course; once the economy recovers (in either 2013 or 2017) there might be somebody interested in bringing B&M book retailing to the Borders-less areas but odds are it will be a very different kind of operation. Smaller, more diverse or more like HALF-PRICE BOOKS...

[Lemurion]

We have a BAM that's about a quarter mile from where Borders used to be (anchoring the end of a much busier strip mall). It's going strong and sales are up since Boarders died. There's no B&N within 30 miles and I see no likelihood of that changing.

[voracious71]

Originally Posted by BeccaPrice

What killed Borders was years and years of very bad management and bad decisions. They were the grocery store kings, who figured that if you could sell soup, you could sell books. We didn't stock books, we stocked "product" - interchangeable "product".. I worked for Borders during the "make book" days, when we were supposed to sell every customer - whether it was appropriate or not - on whatever the book of the week was. Hideous. And then there was the Borders executive who didn't think Borders needed an internet presence, because "the internet is just a fad."

Oy.. You're right. I worked at Borders in the early 1990s- mainly in the cafe. Even there, we had a lot more input as to products. We would make up our own drinks and have contests to see whose drink sold the best.

The downfall of Borders was management driven, that's for sure..