Am I the last person to read about this? Just spotted: Borders to leave Australia? which points to an article in The Guardian about the book chain’s plans to “focus resources on its remaining domestic chain, which it plans to “revitalize, refocus and ultimately reinvent”. In another reversal of strategy, it will reopen its own branded e-commerce website early next year, ending its alliance with Amazon.com.”
I wonder how well the Perth shop is doing. It’s always quite busy when I go there. I was amused to hear that some of my family members think the shop’s “just like a library, they have so many books, and you don’t have to buy, just go and sit in their nice chairs and read and make notes if you like”. I was asked to recommend fantasy authors the other day, and “Are they available in K-Mart, ’cause it’s always cheaper there?”
Speaking of cheap books, I noticed that Borders is selling the 7th Harry Potter at hugely discounted prices (something like $30 instead of the new-release hard cover price of $50). How can the small bookshops compete? Bibliobibuli blogged about this the other day, about how an independent bookseller in Malaysia says he won’t be selling the 7th book, precisely because, given the crazy discounts the bigger bookshops seem to be offering, he would have to sell it “at a substantial loss” (I guess the big bookshops are making a loss too. See Borders).
I don’t think I’ve ever rushed to buy a Harry Potter book – I’ll definitely be waiting until the hysteria dies down a bit before getting a copy. And I don’t think I’ll buy it from Borders – I’ll see if I can get it from the public library (the queues will be long, though), or maybe my favourite bookshop, Planet Books (they don’t seem to have an active website, googling turns up my blog post!).
Update, lunchtime: Via LISNews, a Yahoo! News report. “…it is giving up on a decade-long effort to expand its own book-superstore concept internationally and will sell or franchise most of its 73 overseas Borders stores, the [Wall Street] Journal said.”
7 Comments
Borders leaving? That’s the first I’ve heard of it. The Brisbane stores are always crawling with people.
I always get my Harry Potters from a little independent bookstore called “Pulp Fiction”, and when I ordered the new one, they were very careful to let me know that I would be able to get it cheaper elsewhere. That kind of scrupulousness is one of the reasons that I am careful to give them my custom rather than the big chain stores.
I feel dirty whenever I buy things from Borders. Especially if I get some fascist^H^H^H^H^H^H^H Gloria Jean’s beverage.
I generally feel less guilty if I buy from Fantastic Planet or White Dwarf books. Fantastic Planet even imported US editions of Temeraire books before the Australian editions are published.
Sheena, I also like the fact that when you regularly visit a small business the shopkeeper is more likely to remember you!
Matthias, don’t feel guilty!!
Oh and I forgot to say, as a tea drinker, I am completely immune to Gloria Jean’s 😉
Here in the States, Borders doesn’t seem to be doing so well. I’ve watched two Borders stores decline over the last couple of years — fewer and fewer books, fewer and fewer CDs. Here too people sit and copy out recipes or take notes, sometimes with another book as the backing for their piece of paper. (That’s terrible!)
Yes, there’s nothing like the thrill when you enter the bookshop and the shopkeeper sees you and starts to rummage through the pile of ordered items for your book before you open your mouth.
I do sometimes buy from Borders, but I draw the line at Gloria Jean’s. A coffee shop which won’t trust me with crockery gets a big black mark, not to mention the whole American chain thing.
I reckon Borders may appear busy but a fair number of people in the store don’t actually buy. I do browse in there a lot but if I can get the book(s) in K-Mart or Target I will buy from those stores instead – much cheaper. But having said that, Borders has a really great range of books that those department stores just don’t have. Bought Jac a really good BBQ Bible from Borders recently – would never find that in K-Mart or Target. I am looking fwd to having a really good shopping session at Borders with the voucher you guys gave me for my bday!
I pre-ordered my HP6 from Dymocks last time and paid $29.95; have already pre-ordered my HP7 for the same price again from Dymocks. I would’ve ordered from Borders and got my free plush owl (heh) but it will be more convenient to go to my local Dymocks than to catch the train early in the morning to get to Borders on a Sat to join all the HP fans in the queue!