Barnes and Noble Facts
Barnes and Noble is the largest specialty retailer in the world, chiefly through the operations of its Barnes and Noble Booksellers chain of bookstores based in the United States. It is known for large, upscale retail outlets, many of which contain a cafe serving Starbucks coffee, and for competitive discounting of bestsellers. Most stores also sell magazines, newspapers, DVDs, graphic novels, and music.
As of January 31, 2004, the company operated 840 stores in 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. They plan to open 30-35 new stores every year.
Barnes and Noble History
Barnes and Noble start could be traced back to 1873 when Charles M. Barnes opened up a store in Wheaton, Illinois as a book printer. The first true bookstore was actually set up by his son, William (in partnership with G. Clifford Noble), in 1917 in New York City. During the 1950s and 60’s their bookstore in New York vied with Brentano’s as a new-book retailer. Barnes and Noble distinguished itself by selling textbooks, scholarly, and technical books as well as a huge selection of general-interest titles.
The business was purchased in 1971 by Leonard Riggio, its current chairman. Riggio oversaw the growth of the struggling business into the largest retailer of books in North America, where its critics claim it has contributed (along with online retailer Amazon.com) to the decline of local booksellers. In 2002, Leonard Riggio’s brother Stephen Riggio was named CEO.
The chain opened an online bookstore, bn.com, in 1997, largely to compete with Amazon. The two businesses make an interesting comparison, because as of 2003 Amazon was and is a pure Internet business, while Barnes and Noble combines what is practically a clone of the Amazon Internet bookstore with their huge chain of brick-and-mortar retail stores.
Barnes and Noble Publishing
Unlike most other bookstore chains, Barnes and Noble has a significant publishing business line. Under its own imprint, Barnes and Noble publishes a number of specialty titles, particularly large-format coffee table books featuring photography, graphic arts, or maps.
These include a number of books where Barnes and Noble has acquired the U.S. or English-language rights from another publisher, or where copyright has expired, and arranges for the material to be inexpensively reprinted, often in Singapore or China. In addition, Barnes and Noble commissions reprint anthologies and omnibus editions using in-house editors.
Beginning around 1992 through early 2003,Barnes and Noble released a series of Adult and Children Literature Classics. Originally only available in hardcover, most of the titles came in a black dustjacket version as well as a cream colored dustjacket version. In 2003,Barnes and Noble revamped and expanded the line of Literature Classics as well as released them in both hardcover and paperback mass market editions. As of October 2005 they continue to release new titles to their Classics selection.
In 2002, Barnes and Noble acquired Sterling Publishing, which chiefly publishes how-to books.
CEO Stephen Riggio has been quoted as saying that he expects 10% of Barnes and Noble bookstore sales to come from books published in-house. While this has been praised as a good business strategy, it is controversial in both bookselling and publishing industry circles because of the competitive advantages conferred by vertical integration.
Barnes and Noble Features
Most Barnes and Noble locations feature a Barnes and Noble Café, serving a modified Starbucks beverage menu, along with bakery items from The Cheesecake Factory and bottled beverages from a multitude of vendors. B&N Cafés are owned and operated exclusively by Barnes and Noble, Inc.
Nevertheless, the Starbucks logo is a prominent portion of the overall B&N Cafe branding package, and is depicted on cups, architectural signage, and employee uniforms. Understandably, this leads to confusion for many customers, often traveling, who attempt to use their Starbucks gift cards, or order drinks that are available in actual Starbucks stores but are not on the somewhat pared-down Barnes and Noble Café menu.
Ironically Barnes and Noble’s competition, Borders, also has a relationship with Starbucks, as they are replacing their cafés with cafés that feature Starbucks-owned brand, Seattle’s Best Coffee.
In 2004, Barnes and Noble began offering wi-fi in the cafe area of selected stores, using the SBC FreedomLink network. As of late 2005, service was available in approximately 600 out of B&N’s 850 stores, with all stores to be wired by the end of 2006.
