Item — HN Reader

Barnes and Noble probably needs to realize it’s core value is the in store experience of leisurely browsing at a kind of “third place” away from home/work. Honestly I don’t know anyone who has bought a book on B&N online, but know lots of people who just want to hang out at a Barnes and Noble and read/explore. That was the appeal in the 90s, that’s still the appeal. Nook and e-commerce are just distractions from that main differentiator.

I wonder how many other places are just being bad amazon clones when their core value is something different...

3 comments

> know lots of people who just want to hang out at a Barnes and Noble and read/explore.

Maintaining a large inventory of books is a financial burden for bookshops. For that reason, most massive bookshops in North America and Western Europe have slashed their book inventory heavily compared to the 1990s. In the place of books, they prefer to sell trendy things like vinyl records, Kikkerland products, teas, etc.. However, while a customer can spend a few minutes looking at what’s available, this kind of inventory does not offer many opportunities for “exploring”.

Also, even if customers would not order from B&N online, they might still order a book they see at B&N from Amazon, perhaps even while they are inside the B&N. Smartphones allowing customers to browse in your store and then order a desired item for cheaper from your competitor, were not yet a thing back in the 1990s when B&N was in its heyday.

This may all be true, but I feel like the solution is somewhere in building on the brands strength (as a 3rd place) instead of trying to be bad Amazon.

>Barnes and Noble probably needs to realize it’s core value is the in store experience of leisurely browsing at a kind of “third place” away from home/work.

Being a place to wander around and browse but never purchase the merchandise is not a "core value" any retailer wants to have. Barnes and Noble is not a home away from home, it's a store, no different than any other. You're meant to buy something and get out.

If you’re going to compete with Amazon on a “buy something and get out” basis, you’re going to have to offer me something better than Amazon. If that’s “you’re expected to drive over here and park”, you aren’t winning. If it’s “you can drop in, have a look around, maybe get a coffee in the cafe, chat with a semi-knowledgeable associate, crack a book open and sample a few pages before buying”, then you’ve got a fighting chance.

>If it’s “you can drop in, have a look around, maybe get a coffee in the cafe, chat with a semi-knowledgeable associate, crack a book open and sample a few pages before buying”, then you’ve got a fighting chance.

The key part of that being "before buying." Many people will literally just browse and use the free wi-fi and some will read entire books and magazines in the store without buying anything.

A store should still want that.

Starbucks, for example, makes lots of money from people who are just there for the free WiFi.

A certain type of store should want that. I doubt a store that spend huge amounts of money in stocking their shelves with books will get as much out of it as a coffee shop.

That said, my local B&N has a Starbucks inside (and a Peets 40 feet away directly across a small street), but I doubt they get more than a small fraction of the revenue from the Starbucks, and at around 4-5 times the floor space as the Peets.

wait. how do they make money from a person who doesn't buy anything but takes up a chair and table and consumes WiFi for free?

Because even if someone doesn't intend to buy anything, and was only planning on going there for free WiFi, there is still a high chance that they will purchase something anyway.

every B&N I've ever been in was chock full of people (often students, judging by their textbooks) who are taking up seats and tables but don't appear to be buying enough (or anything at all). my guess is that providing unmetered, unregulated seating space in a book selling retailer is too often a losing proposition. is that wrong? what am i missing?

Starts to sound like a library with expensive books when you put it like that.

Of course, the advantage of B&N is that anyone can pop in anywhere. A library doesn't make as much sense in an airport or mall.

Yes, I’ve definitely been stopping in at B&N to browse more recently. Honestly even though I read library books electronically, I still browse and buy physical books too. And of course magazines...and notebooks...there’s a market there.