Shop Talk
Retailers, consumers and prices
Check Out Line: Borders launches e-bookstore … finally
Check out Borders Group finally launching its e-bookstore.
The No. 2 U.S. bookstore chain’s electronic bookstore comes nine months after rival Barnes & Noble debuted its Nook e-reader and three months after Apple introduced its popular iPad tablet computer, allowing both companies, and Amazon.com, which sells the Kindle e-reader, to get a head start.
No worries, says Borders, which saw sales at its namesake superstores open at least a year and on its website fall 11.4 percent in the first quarter.
“We’ll take market share just by turning it on,” said Mike Edwards, president of Borders Inc, the company’s main operating business.
Edwards said Borders had data and email addresses for the 38 million customers in its loyalty program and about 700 stores at which to promote its virtual bookstore, which will help it catch up. The company’s goal is to secure a 17 percent share of the e-book market by July 2011.
Check Out Line: The latest bookseller boss shakeup
Check out the new guy in charge at Barnes & Noble.
On Thursday, Barnes & Noble named William Lynch, the (young) father of its Nook e-reader, as its new chief executive. Outgoing CEO Stephen Riggio — the chairman and founder’s brother — is sticking around as a vice chairman.
Barnes & Noble appears to be betting that the Nook will be a prime source of future growth. Lynch, 39, called e-books “key to our future” during a morning conference call.
Check Out Line: No nook for you
Check out another nook delay.
Some of Barnes & Noble’s top stores were supposed to have nook e-readers available for sale today. Instead, shoppers can just look at the nook, not take it home.
In-store demo models have been delivered and Barnes & Noble is accepting pre-orders, spokeswoman Mary Ellen Keating said.
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