I considered putting this in the cmemtery . . .
Looks like Borders, the Second largest bookstore chain is closing all its stores.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Borders-Calls-Off-Auction-nytimes-1678947798.html?x=0&.v=1 (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Borders-Calls-Off-Auction-nytimes-1678947798.html?x=0&.v=1)
yahoo news is reporting some awful news. Borders (which is my all-time favorite book store) is official on closing all of there stores
Here's the article
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Borders-Calls-Off-Auction-nytimes-1678947798.html?x=0 (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Borders-Calls-Off-Auction-nytimes-1678947798.html?x=0)
haha Fester, it looks like we posted the same situation of Borders. I apologize, I didn't see that anyone had posted anything
Stupid Kindles. u6juu
Really I think the prices of books AND mags have gotten too high. How many regular people are going to pay $30+ for a H.B or $9 for a P.B? It's crazy. I LOVE the look of a multi shelf library ,that's why I wait and do Ebay because like many others I LIKE actually holding a book ,turning the pages looking at the art on the spines ,etc. And vintage books with that attic smell. OOOOHH! It's magic.
I understand the whole concept of a kindle but IMO going to a bookstore ,especially used bookstore and browsing the aisles is half the fun.
Ok,I got off track , you know what I mean. ;D
I'm with you Wicked Lester! I look forward to going into the local Borders (16 miles away from my house), and buying my monster magazines once a month. I don't believe I will ever enjoy a Nook or a Kindle, etc. I feel very strongly about these e-books, but I keep my mouth shut around my peeps! Bleh.
Quote from: steve050305 on July 18, 2011, 07:13:16 PM
haha Fester, it looks like we posted the same situation of Borders. I apologize, I didn't see that anyone had posted anything
Bet we hit the post key about the same time. Remember what they say about great minds . . . ::)
We'll call it a draw.
It's official now, if it isn't on a screen today's kids will not try to read it. SHAMEFUL.
American's have become too lazy to drive to the bookstore. I can almost just hear kids ten years from now : "Books ? What is that ? " Excuse me, I'm going to go memorize all my Lovecraft books now. Fahrenheit 451 has just become a reality.
Quote from: CreepysFan on July 19, 2011, 03:35:25 AM
American's have become too lazy to drive to the bookstore.
I don't think that it's necessarily laziness. I know for myslef, I can't afford a new hardback "reading" book (as opposed to a coffee table or photo-focused book) when they're around $30 or so. Even the paperback books are costly. For decades I have scored books (hardback and softcover) at yard sales and such for a fraction of their original cost. I realize that my purchases do little for the authors and publishers, but that's my financial situation.
Rob
When I moved to Temecula, there was a wonderful place called "Little Professor Bookshop". It had places to sit and read, good magazine selection, and you could order any book they didn't have. Then the City of Temecula decided we had to have a regional Mall, and for the city it was a good thing, because the city made Money. Too bad for businesses like the little professor Bookshop, which couldn't compete with Boarders and Barnes and Noble, because all the traffic wen't to the new mall. Now there is lots of vacant retail space in the parts of Temecula around the new mall, and even at the mall it's self. Sorry to see Boarders go, as I am that Barnes and Noble can now do away with comfortable seating areas and other customer amenities since they no longer have to care about competition. I've since moved to a small town in North Carolina, and I much perfer the smaller businesses that are here, to what I left behind in the would be big City of Temecula California.
Quote from: monsterphile on July 19, 2011, 09:01:57 AM... For decades I have scored books (hardback and softcover) at yard sales and such for a fraction of their original cost.
That's a big part of it, and local library sales, especially on the last day when you can fill a grocery bag for $3. (Anyone ever go to the library sale in Ithaca? it's huge!)
But if I know what book (or CD, when I bought them) I want and don't need it that day (and have $25 worth of stuff to buy to get free shipping), I'd rather pay less at Amazon than drive to Borders or B&N. And often find they don't have what I wanted.
My main source for SCARY MONSTERS, VIDEO WATCHDOG, HORROR HOUND and RUE MORGUE (and of course, books) is fading into history...
Rest in peace, Borders. Letting people read all day long for free was a boon to those of us who love to read, but perhaps it hastened your demise.
Quote from: Wicked Lester on July 18, 2011, 07:35:13 PM
Stupid Kindles.
Really I think the prices of books AND mags have gotten too high. How many regular people are going to pay $30+ for a H.B or $9 for a P.B? It's crazy. I LOVE the look of a multi shelf library ,that's why I wait and do Ebay . . .I understand the whole concept of a kindle but IMO going to a bookstore ,especially used bookstore and browsing the aisles is half the fun.
Kindles and ebooks are not really the problem here. Buying books online at deep discounts is a major part of the problem. Amazon, eBay, Barnes and Noble online and the rest have done serious damage to the brick and mortar stores. A big factor in the failure of Borders and several other chains (remember B-Dalton?) involved a corporate model which failed to change with the times. Haunted Hearse mentioned
The Little Professor bookshops. There used to be quite a few of them. Now there are less than a dozen. Why? failed business model. They were a
franchise chain. That meant in addition to all the other costs of operating a bookstore you had to pay a licensing fee, comply with design requirements and buy your stock from the main warehouse--none of which are conducive to being a small "independent" bookstore.
After several months of looking around, last October, I bought a basic nook from Barnes and Noble. I can guarantee that has not cut down on my book purchases. As my wife will attest, the sheer tonnage of actual books I have purchased has not declined noticeably. One bad habit I developed in gradual school was annotating--especially in my history and science books. It is hard to do with an ebook.
In many cases, the e-book prices are hovering around $10 bucks. The trade paperbacks are only a couple of dollars more. For mass market paperbacks, there is really not that much difference between paper and ebook. I prefer my nook for much of my reading out of the house. It lays flat and you don't have to worry about holding it open if you are reading during your lunch break. It also holds thousands of books. I currently have 5 different books I am reading. (That is about the only multitasking I can do.) So, I carry one book instead of five. I also have several reference books. Trivia question? I can look it up. And I have a way to buy and download ebooks from my favorite Indie bookstore, Auntie's Books here in Spokanistan.
Quote from: monsterphile on July 19, 2011, 09:01:57 AM
I don't think that it's necessarily laziness. I know for myslef, I can't afford a new hardback "reading" book (as opposed to a coffee table or photo-focused book) when they're around $30 or so. Even the paperback books are costly. For decades I have scored books (hardback and softcover) at yard sales and such for a fraction of their original cost. I realize that my purchases do little for the authors and publishers, but that's my financial situation.
Rob
Ditto.
I love books. They are a work of art themselves. It's a pity what is happening. I DO agree that they have gotten quite expensive, though.
Quote from: Fester on July 19, 2011, 01:23:14 PM
Haunted Hearse mentioned The Little Professor bookshops. There used to be quite a few of them. Now there are less than a dozen. Why? failed business model. They were a franchise chain.
Actually, little Professor wasn't a franchise, it was an independent. It did well too, until the City of Temecula brought in a regional mall, so the city could make money, without any regard for the local independent small businesses in our community. It's bad enough the city forces you to meet all these rules and regulations when attempting to open a business. It's worse when all a corporation has to do is rent a finished space, and not have to deal with all the headaches a city will put those who wish to open a business through.
Quote from: MDG on July 19, 2011, 11:29:56 AM
I'd rather pay less at Amazon than drive to Borders or B&N. And often find they don't have what I wanted.
Yup. I love going to the bookstore, it's very calming and relaxing, however there's just not much of a decision when you can click a button and get that awesome book you wanted at the bookstore for half the price or even less. Also my tastes are usually so specific that I too often find that I actually HAVE to find my books online. Still though, it's a real bummer that Borders' is closing.
Quote from: Haunted hearse on July 19, 2011, 06:21:05 PM
Actually, little Professor wasn't a franchise, it was an independent. It did well too, until the City of Temecula brought in a regional mall, so the city could make money, without any regard for the local independent small businesses in our community. It's bad enough the city forces you to meet all these rules and regulations when attempting to open a business. It's worse when all a corporation has to do is rent a finished space, and not have to deal with all the headaches a city will put those who wish to open a business through.
When I was in college, I had a history professor who decided to invest in a Little Professor bookstore. He nearly lost his shirt when it folded.
Unless the Little Professor in Temecula was using the name without permission, it was most likely a franchise. Here is a link to the company.
http://www.littleprofessor.com/ (http://www.littleprofessor.com/)
It's funny to me that when Borders started opening stores across the land, people sounded the death knell for small independent bookstores, and for the most part, that came to pass. It was suggested at the time, that independent publishers and books that didn't adhere to the moral and/or political and/or social outlook of the big publishers would cease to have an outlet for sales. Now Borders is going away, along with the printed book eventually, and through eBook readers like the Kindle and others, those books which didn't conform to a major publisher's idea of "appropriate" once again have an outlet.
It's not the same tactile effect of a book, but actually I prefer my Kindle. Contrary to what many who haven't tried one might think, the Kindle is not backlighted, it's black type on a solid creamy white background, and if you want to read it at night, you need a light. Instead of flipping pages, you touch the screen and swipe your finger across. If you have bad eyes, you can make the type bigger if you wish, larger even than most large print editions. Of course, there's no cost to make the type bigger or smaller, just as there's not on your computer. If I hear about a book on the radio and I'm out somewhere, I can download it to my Kindle and be reading it in a few short minutes.
Of course there are drawbacks... of course.. but books have gotten too expensive, and they are cheaper on a Kindle. There is a much, much wider choice of what you can read, than what is available at Borders.
My son used to carry his schoolbooks in a backpack that weighed about 40 - 50 lbs. Now he carries his computer in a backpack that weighs about 12 lbs and all his books are on it. They're also much cheaper, and can be updated each year with new information.
I'm one of the people who bemoaned the opening of the book "megastores" and was sad to see the small independent bookstores go out of business. Many of the reasons I was sad about that make me glad that the book megastores are closing, and free choice is once again in full effect. Note that books which display on a Kindle need not be purchased or downloaded from Amazon.
Here is an interesting turn of events.
It seems Borders killed itself.
Borders was losing business to Amazon--so what did it do?
Gave its online sales to Amazon! ::)
http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-ticker/another-retailer-bites-dust-borders-doomed-amazon-deal-163606690.html (http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-ticker/another-retailer-bites-dust-borders-doomed-amazon-deal-163606690.html)
Quote from: Fester on July 20, 2011, 01:04:12 AM
Unless the Little Professor in Temecula was using the name without permission, it was most likely a franchise. Here is a link to the company.
http://www.littleprofessor.com/ (http://www.littleprofessor.com/)
It may have been a franchise, but it didn't feel like one. The people who operated it were frinedly, and they had used a lot of thie own resources to get this one open.
Quote from: Fester on July 23, 2011, 11:28:19 AM
Here is an interesting turn of events.
It seems Borders killed itself.
Borders was losing business to Amazon--so what did it do?
Gave its online sales to Amazon! ::)
http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-ticker/another-retailer-bites-dust-borders-doomed-amazon-deal-163606690.html (http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-ticker/another-retailer-bites-dust-borders-doomed-amazon-deal-163606690.html)
read the article and watched the video, that's insane
'nother post-mortem here: http://www.slate.com/id/2299642/ (http://www.slate.com/id/2299642/)
I was never a fan of Borders with their high priced cd's BUT I would scour their magazine racks for horror mags that smaller book stores stopped carrying where I live. Only one book store in my area sells Filmfax, Horror Hound, and Fangoria. That's it. No Scary., no Creepy, no Scarlet the Film Magazine, no indie British movie/tv/1950's/1960's media mags, no Hello! (love those Brits! Go Wills and Kate!)...nuttin' hunny. Go out and support your local garage/yard sale, Goodwill, Salvation Army, and other thrift stores...oh and of course your Local Library and their book sales! ;D
MH
anybody going to Borders when and if they have a huge sale of there stuff? usually when a business goes out they mark things way down, I plan on going sometime soon. They hope to have all assets and items sold by September to pay-off creditors. I have Borders gift-certificates and cards, wonder if they will still be useful? If so, I will practical get it for free lol
I passed the one near us and there was a sign for "up to 40% off."
I hate when they close out a business and have people standing on the road holding the sign--wonder if it's just a way to give people as many hours as possible before they're out of work.
I think place's like Border's, and B/N's just outpriced themselfs out of business. I refuse to pay 12.50 for a paperback, and unless I really want it, I won't pay the unheard of price for a Hardback. >:D
They closed up shop here last year. They closed over half of their stores then and I remember telling my girlfriend they were gonna go under. Their prices were too high to rely on online sales. I miss the store, as stated above they had a great magazine selection. And I didn't mind paying a little more for a book just for the convenience of getting it immediatly, and I like my first editions in primo shape so I could pick the best one they had on the shelf! Not to mention we don't have a bookstore in this podunk town at all now. And we haven't had a comic store in over ten years. So I had to stop buying them. I just find the stuff I wanted on ebay and buy the whole run for pennies on the dollar. It saves me money but it just isn't the same. I've been thinking of starting a comic shop here just to give kids a place to buy them and a chance to experience comics, it will be a sad day in my opinion if we lose pulp to downloads.
This is insane
http://money.msn.com/saving-money-tips/post.aspx?post=cf485601-632b-4174-861c-c5cc38372cda>1=33009 (http://money.msn.com/saving-money-tips/post.aspx?post=cf485601-632b-4174-861c-c5cc38372cda>1=33009)
Quote from: steve050305 on July 28, 2011, 03:50:10 AM
This is insane
http://money.msn.com/saving-money-tips/post.aspx?post=cf485601-632b-4174-861c-c5cc38372cda>1=33009 (http://money.msn.com/saving-money-tips/post.aspx?post=cf485601-632b-4174-861c-c5cc38372cda>1=33009)
It is standard operating procedure. Liquidation companies come in and reset the prices to MSRP, and then as the weeks drag on and the inventory dwindles, the prices will start to drop. When Hollywood Video closed here in Spokanistan, the first week "sale" was about 5% off list price. They did not even discount their rentals. As the inventory dropped by about half, then the prices started going down.
The whole game is to maximize recoverable cash for the creditors and the profits for the liquidation company running the sale.