Borders Bankruptcy Coming Next Week

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Source: The Huffington Post

NEW YORK — Borders Group Inc. may file for bankruptcy reorganization as early as Monday or Tuesday, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

The No. 2 traditional bookstore in the U.S. also plans to close about 200 of its 674 stores and cut thousands of jobs, the newspaper reported on Friday, citing sources it did not name.

The story also says Borders is hearing pitches from Bank of America Corp. and General Electric Co.'s finance arm for $450 million in financing to keep operating under bankruptcy protection.

"There have been constant inquiries by reporters, and stories written, regarding whether Borders is considering a Chapter 11 filing," said Borders spokeswoman Mary Davis. "Borders is not prepared at this time to report on the course of action it will pursue."


Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/12/borders-bankruptcy-detail_n_822128.html

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[DonCoquixote]

1. bad news

because it means neither the retail biz nor the book business has learned squat.

[OnyxCollie]

2. Fuck 'em.

They shot themselves in the foot a decade ago.

Website? Who needs a website? Let's work on a kiosk that will let people buy music and burn it on a disc!

They even had t-shirts made for employees that read "Who knew?' on the front and "Borders has a website!" on the back. (In reality, it was just a portal to Amazon.)

Dumbasses.

OnyxCollie, former Borders employee, stores 28 & 286, 1999-2005.

[Name removed]

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[toska]

4. Agreed, damage was done a decade ago

The lack of a real response to Amazon sealed their fate. They didn't want to lose store sales and ended up losing everything. Who's going to pay twice as much for something they can get online? The "Who knew?" t-shirts came before the sellout to Amazon. There were even posters, should have kept one. It was frustrating talking to people in Ann Arbor where Borders is headquartered, and they didn't know that Borders had a website. The marketing was horrible, and management didn't want to compete. They were happy to just have a site, which is the last thing the employees wanted to here.

Does anybody really think that Borders could find a way to survive against Apple and Amazon? Want a big title, Walmart and Target will have it for cheaper. Want something obscure, Amazon has everything, for cheaper. Borders spent 5 years trying to redo their merchandising systems and failed twice.

I feel bad for my friends that are still there, there are a couple remaining, but most have moved on. Its time to turn out the lights.

[leveymg]

5. Ah shit. It was a nice place to spend Sunday afternoons w/ my kid.

Actually bought books and magazines there every now and then, including all those iced coffee drinks.

Shit, so few "public" spaces left. Sometimes, I hate the web-based economy.

[DFW]

6. Fully agree

I love walking through and browsing book stores, always end up buying books I never knew existed.

[zonkers]

8. You are so right. Most of them were really public space disguising as retail. Great places

to wander and hangout. Will sure be mised by me and many others. Mine had a seattle's best with a balcony on the 2nd floor.

[Le Taz Hot]

7. Ironic, ain't it?

The Big Box Book store -- that ran the local dealers out of business -- too big to continue. I know this is the era of e-books, Amazon, etc., but maybe, just maybe this will eventually bring some of the local book sellers back. Nothing like going into a book store specializing in out-of-print or hard-to-find publications and just spending the afternoon there. (Sigh)

[GTurck]

9. I have a...

strong feeling that smaller independent stores will now have a chance to come back.
I like the ambiance at the Barnes & Noble (We have a Hastings and a very small Borders in the Mall) but often have been frustrated by the experience too. They carry all the "Christian" and right-wing best-sellers but not the more interesting and obscure books or those that are more liberal. Marketing, you know.
Sixty miles from us is "Book People" in Austin but that is a long trip for a couple of dodgers just to scan the shelves for a couple of hours. They have the ambience and all the other amenities though.
Our Army town has a quite varied population but our book stores must provide for the sort of people who only read the latest blockbuster novel or the loudest conservative screed because they move the fastest. Those of us with wider and liberal tastes are left to spin in the wind. For instance 20 of Glenn Beck's latest but not one of Thom Hartmann's.
Smaller stores could more easily niche market and make a profit.

[Gin]

10. I was given their E-reader as a gift..wonder if it will affect that site

[Xenotime]

11. Good. The age of the book is comeing to an end anyway

more and more pepole are getting their information in other ways

[mainer]

12. I don't think it's "good" when something so beloved goes extinct

We may soon get all our info from the internet, but is it necessarily a good thing?

There's something wonderful about opening up an old book, seeing yellowed pages, and seeing what previous owners scribbled in the margins.

[mainer]

13. Barnes and Noble next. Then the independents.

All we'll have left is used bookstores, for those of us still attached to fine old things.

Truly, Amazon and e-books are the future.

[blaze]

14. "The No. 2 traditional bookstore"

Maybe it's just me.

I don't think of Borders as a "traditional" bookstore. I think of it as a "Big Box" bookstore.

I guess traditional means "brick and mortar?"

Sigh

THIS is traditional: http://www.tatteredcover.com/

Maybe I'm just old. :shrug:

[Joe Bacon]

15. Got no love in my heart for Borders

I still remember when Los Angeles had wonderful independent booksellers like Book City, Fowler Brothers, Dutton's and Midnight Special, all driven out of business by Crown Books, Borders and Barnes & Noble. I do hope the door slams Borders on the ass on the way out.