Comments on: B&N results are disappointing, and one wonders if prior success with NOOK might deserve part of the blame http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame The Idea Logical Company Blog Sun, 19 May 2013 10:55:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and the 70% Royalty « The Active Voice http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15588 Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and the 70% Royalty « The Active Voice Thu, 10 Jan 2013 22:20:37 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15588 [...] read a few recent articles that make things sound pretty damn ominous for Barnes & Noble. The company’s been closing [...]

]]> By: Mike Shatzkin http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15587 Mike Shatzkin Thu, 10 Jan 2013 21:34:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15587 Sorry, but this just doesn’t feel right to me. They demonstrably stock a lot more than Dummies and Idiots Guides. And “mall and coffee shop rats” dig also doesn’t fit. Very few B&N stores are in malls; those were the B. Daltons they’ve shut down. There are a lot of unique local experiences, and I don’t know what yours have been, but these generalizations don’t ring true.

And it would be nice if the “larger indies” thrived, particularly if B&N struggles, but that remains to be seen.

Mike

]]> By: Hermgirl http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15586 Hermgirl Thu, 10 Jan 2013 21:28:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15586 Thanks for reminding me I need to read all my Nook books.

]]> By: Hermgirl http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15585 Hermgirl Thu, 10 Jan 2013 21:21:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15585 Sad for brick and mortar stores in general, but in B&M’s case there seem to be a few factors that the big corporation got wrong: You need to be able to sell to readers, not mall and coffee shop rats. They stocked their shelves with little else but For Dummies and Complete Idiots Guides, They couldn’t be bothered to hire or keep on former booksellers from other stores, instead opting for “up sellers” who may have asked people twice if they wanted a store credit card after the customer said “no,” but who usually didn’t know too much about books.

You can blame this on the internet and ebooks all you want, but it’s as if B&N wanted to go under. Larger indies will likely step into the breach.

]]> By: Mike Shatzkin http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15584 Mike Shatzkin Thu, 10 Jan 2013 18:18:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15584 Thanks for checking in. Unfortunately, this tracks with the expectations I expressed in the post.

Mike

]]> By: Geoff Burling http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15583 Geoff Burling Thu, 10 Jan 2013 18:12:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15583 Anecdota from Portland, OR. I visited two different B&N around Christmas (Clackamas Town Center & Lloyd Center branches), & while both looked like going concerns I was struck at how much their book inventory has shrunk: yes, they still had books for sale, but they were hard to find amongst all of the other stuff — notebooks, backpacks, board games — they had for sale. Neither appeared that busy.Compare this to Powell’s Books (the big store downtown), which was busy the 2 times I visited — although not Christmas season crazy — yet still quite clearly displaying its endless supply of books. (The second time I stopped by I purchased an academic monograph on Justinian’s Institutes.)

]]> By: Mike Shatzkin http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15582 Mike Shatzkin Wed, 09 Jan 2013 21:19:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15582 So glad to hear this!!! If any others out there have impressions about your local B&N — particularly positive ones — please feel free to add to the string.

Mike

]]> By: Jen in CA http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15581 Jen in CA Wed, 09 Jan 2013 21:00:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15581 Anecdata from Northern CA. I never have a problem finding someone to help me in our B&N. The sales staff are friendly and VERY helpful, particularly in the children’s section. There are always plenty of competent cashiers. If my local B&N closes I will be devastated. There’s a large used book store here also but it’s not easy to find what one is looking for amid the stacked arrangements of books all over the floor. And I really don’t want to live in a world where I have to shop for books at Wal Mart.

]]> By: Mike Shatzkin http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15580 Mike Shatzkin Wed, 09 Jan 2013 02:37:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15580 Well, you’re right about the problem. Picking the inventory when you’re offering a fraction of the total possibilities is a daunting challenge.
But Expresso doesn’t solve it. First of all, they have access (rights) and capability to deliver (size and color are limitations) to a small fraction of the books you’d want. But, even if they did, it doesn’t work. The Espresso machine delivers a book in 5 minutes. You’d wait 5 minutes for a book, right? I would.

But what if it WORKS. What if there are three people in front of you on line? 9? You want to wait 45 minutes for me to print your book?

Not a solution to this problem, in my opinion.

Mike

]]> By: kwn2196 http://www.idealog.com/blog/bn-results-are-disappointing-and-one-wonders-if-prior-success-with-nook-might-deserve-part-of-the-blame/#comment-15579 kwn2196 Wed, 09 Jan 2013 01:55:00 +0000 http://www.idealog.com/?p=6774#comment-15579 It seems to me one reason print bookstores are struggling is because the model is inherently incompatible with cost efficiency. The number of book titles approaches infinity (it seems) and yet shelf space is finite. Amazon and other online retailers solve this problem with huge warehouses. Has B&N ever installed an Espresso machine (print on demand, not the coffee!) or otherwise looked into a POD approach?

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