Local Booksellers Cheer Barnes & Noble’s Demise - “They ran the place like a business,”

[The Straight Story]

Local Booksellers Cheer Barnes & Noble’s Demise
By Riya Bhattacharjee (03-02-07)

The Barnes & Noble bookstore located in downtown Berkeley will close May 31, a piece of news that has left local independent booksellers ecstatic.

“I am overjoyed, to say the least,” said Tim Rogers, store manager for Pegasus Books located right across the street from the Barnes & Noble.

“This is great news for us,” he said. “Although we were not in direct competition with BN, it was interesting working so close to a big chain. I am sure this will improve business for us.”

Store employees declined to comment Thursday on the reason for closure. Barnes & Noble customer relations could not be reached before press time.

“Berkeley’s a tough market to break into when it comes to selling books. We have some tough competition here in the form of local bookstores,” said Michael Caplan, the city's economic development manager. “The Barnes & Noble on Shattuck was a smaller store for the chain compared to its other locations. It just wasn’t doing the preferred volume. I guess that’s one of the reasons for it closing down.”

....

“They ran the place like a business,” she said. “For us it’s more of a community thing. People who work at Pegasus and buy from Pegasus live in Berkeley. As a result the money is going back into Berkeley. But this is not the case for chains such as Barnes & Noble.”

http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/article.cfm?issue=03-02-07&storyID=26461

[Contrite]

1. Yay!

Another one bites the dust. I'd like ours to go away. Ever since a B&N replaced the family-owned bookstore I have not set foot inside.

[tblue]

2. B&N is a blue company, but I'm always glad when the mom & pops get a break

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

3. I live in an area where the only other bookstore is a used bookstore and my Barnes

and Nobles is like an oasis to the community.

[AlCzervik]

4. i like Moe's personally, Berkley has great bookstores, independent ones

that are wonderful to shop in or just browse.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

5. Boycotts CAN drive out chains

Ashland, Oregon boycotted a Domino's Pizza to death due to disgust at the owner's politics.

[AlCzervik]

6. and their pizza sucks.

[gravity]

8. I boycott them for that reason

[Bicoastal]

7. I'm not ashamed to say I once worked at a Barnes and Noble....

...and I'm not hesitant to say it was the worst job I ever had (albeit briefly).

They were so concerned that their employees would rip them off that they placed more surveilance on us than the customers!

[XemaSab]

9. Cody's shut a few months ago

It's worrisome that bookstores are doing poorly in Berkeley. Barnes and Noble is the canary in the coal mine. Moe's, Pegasus, and others will hold out longer because they can't eat their losses. :P

[HuffleClaw]

10. good to hear

big box bookstores are a plague.