Independent or Chain Bookstores?

Much has been said about the recent struggles of bookstore chain giant Barnes and Noble, which recently put itself up for sale due to undervalued shares. The most common answer to what seems to be the problems of the store is that it needs to embrace the new generation of reader that it serves. So far B&N has made a point of holding off in the way of technology and only recently began marketing and selling it’s online books. It’s taken them far longer than it should have to catch up and many people believe that they missed their opportunity to firmly establish themselves as a contender in the emerging e-reader market. Whatever the cause, we do know that B&N is having a hard time staying afloat and that it could make a big difference in the way that books are sold.

With more and more people turning to electronic devices to read and away from physical books big chains like Barnes and Noble get left out pretty quickly and it’s small, independent bookstores that rush in. These smaller stores are doing much better in the recent economy and not just because of the failing movies of big stores. Part of it is the “local is better” mantra that college students and environmentalists alike are repeating everywhere but part of it is also the business sense that staying small makes. With e-readers and e-books becoming the new choice of reading methods the average consumer is buying less in the way of physical books which means that big chains that rely on huge sales of their printed merchandise to do well struggle while smaller stores that don’t need such high profits to keep going do just fine.

On top of that these independent stores are easily able to allow big retailers like Amazon handle the distribution of e-books while they take on more specialty titles and the classic hardbacks, as they provide that lovely bookstore atmosphere without the feel of a big chain. For people who are looking for not only the convenience of reading but also the enjoyable feeling of it they can easily have the best of both worlds. They can turn to the online stores for their e-books and they can also head to smaller bookstores for hardbacks of their favorite books as well as that nostalgic feeling of buying a new book.

It may very well be that big chain bookstores are on their way out as people turn to more local and more electronic methods to get their reading fixes. With the high costs of big stores like these and those that aren’t willing to move forward with new markets it may just mean that the independent booksellers have found their way back in to the hearts of book-lovers everywhere. I personally love indie bookstores and would happily forsake my local borders to visit one any day so this new development sounds just great to me!