Books – Page 52 – The View From Sari's World

How Borders could have been saved

As everyone knows, Borders is going out of business. It is always sad to see a company fold, if only because of the loss of jobs. I feel for the thousands of clerks who are now part of the unemployed. Losing Borders is no surprise, long time readers know I have been blogging about the changes I have seen at my local Borders for years. The changes never seemed to help, if anything, they seemed to drive book buyers away. This last weekend I spent a lot of time in my local store, talking to clerks and other customers. I have come to the conclusion Borders may have been saved if the upper management had used common “book” sense.

As soon as Borders announced they were going out of business and put their books on sale the masses turned up. As much as it turned m ystomach to see so many people in the store looking for bargains (it reminded me of relatives fighting for grandma’s stuff) I had to admit the sales signs really worked. So why didn’t Borders offer a better rewards program? What would have been so bad about offering loyal customers 25% off all the time? Barns and Nobles has a great reward program, it is often the deciding factor when I am deciding between a purchase from B&N or Amazon. I had a Borders reward card but hardly used it, 10% was not all that attractive as an incentive.

A couple of years ago, Borders cut back on nonfiction to make room for teen vampire and Manga books. As much as I love seeing young people read, I thought this was a mistake given the economy. Since 2008 teens have been the highest unemployed group; their discretionary spending dried up,yet Borders decided to cater to them at the expense of those who had the money to spend on books; the retired and professionals. Many long time customers complained about this change, but our local store had no control over it. During my two visits to Borders I counted three young people in the teen section; as the other shelves emptied out this section reminded packed with books. The shelves that were emptying out? The history and science section!

Speaking of science, a year ago I went to my local store with a two page wish list. Most of the books on my list were from the Royal Science Academy’s top ten picks. This list is like the Booker prize for science. To my shock, the store did not have one book on my list. When I asked I was told “science books do not sell well in this area”. I ended up going 30miles to B&N who had every book on my list. The customers Borders forgot about were the customers who did not buy from them because they did not stock the right books. I wonder how many other people turned to B&N for their books? Sunday, I saw many of the books from my list; I saw them in buyer’s hands. I was told Borders is restocking the stores from their warehouses and so each store is getting whatever is on hand. Finally, Borders stocks my loca lstore with quality science books, and yes, they are selling!

Though it is too late for Borders, perhaps this can be a lesson to the next big book chain. Give loyal customers better discounts, cater to those who have the money to spend on books and stock the shelves with quality, award winning books. I am sad to see my town’s only book store close,but this may make room for another one to move in.

Harry Potter; the end of an era

Friday, the final installment of the Harry Potter movieseries hits American theaters. It is the end of an era for many of us. Forsome, it means the end of a series of 8 movies, for me it is the end of ajourney that started with the first book and one more example that my son isgrown and no longer my reading/movie buddy.

The journey started for us 10 years ago when my son was only9. He was reading above his grade level and I was at a loss as to what I couldoffer him. Our house was full of my nonfiction books and his very young readers’soft backs. I did what any good mother would; I headed for the local independentbook store (remember when every town had one of these?) in the hopes of findinga book or two that would hold his attention as it was becoming clear my son wasbecoming a voracious reader. Alex was coming home with armfuls of schoollibrary books, reading at a pace that matched my own. So, heading towards the northcost in our purple jeep (yep, I used to have a purple jeep) I wracked my brainas to what book I could introduce Alex to. At his age I was reading Nancy Drewstories, would he like the Hardy Boys? Was there a new series for boys? As wedrove he went on and on about the boring library books and lamented the lack ofimaginative books found within its walls. Can you picture a 9 year old decryingthe lack of imagination in children’s books? By the time we got to the bookstore I was convinced nothing would satisfy his need for something new andexciting. We lived on the California coast and our cozy independent book storewas small. I was under no illusions that we would find the perfect book.

The smell of that book store will always stay with me; a mixof new book pulp and sea water. All ocean side buildings, no matter how new, absorbthe light musty smell of salt water and seaweed. It is a comforting smell tothose of us who live or lived, on the coast; it is the smell of home. Alex ran over to the children’s sectionintent on finding the perfect book. I looked over to the owner with pleading eyes,could she possibly recommend a book for my picky reader?

So started our journey with Harry Potter. Theowner of the book store (oh what was her name?) pulled a large book from astack and told us that she was having a hard time keeping these in stock. Itseemed everyone was reading Harry Potterand the Sorcerer’s Stone. I was apprehensive; it seemed an awful large bookfor a 9 year old. Alex sat on the floor and started reading, about two pages inhe looked up with his green eyes wide with excitement and asked if we could buyit. I was not sure if I believed he would finish it, but that look got to me,we purchased it and headed home. One week later he finished it, and our love ofall things Potter had begun. He and I read all the books and watched all themovies and argued over Snape’s role as a bad guy. Alex thought he was bad, Ithought he was good, but that may due to Alan Rickman’s portrayal, rather thanwhat I read in the pages. During hishigh school years, Alex read the last three books. The movies no longer held a fascinationfor him, but the books always did. Now, the last movie is coming out, and I amreminded that this is the end of an era. I wonder if my grandchildren will lovethe books. I am keeping them, just in case.

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