News and Events
The Next Chapter
Book retailers say they aren't shrinking from the e-book challenge.
Aug 1, 2010 Shopping Centers Today Steve McLinden
No, bookstores are hardly doomed to extinction. And no, the writing is decidedly not on the wall for the likes of Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million or Borders, though the writing may have gotten downloaded onto an e-book reader. Counterintuitive or doubtful as this view of book superstore continuity might seem to some, it does, in fact, have its true believers. Indeed, say these, bookstores are far from writing their final chapter; instead, they will be penning a new series of dynamic sequels, if they can manage to meet an array of operational and real estate challenges.
The problem is operational rather than being attributable to e-readers or the like, says Ivan Friedman, president and CEO of New York City–based RCS Real Estate Advisors. “They have some challenges, but nothing major is going to happen in the next 24 to 36 months,” Friedman said. Barnes & Noble, in particular, is quick on its feet, he says. “They have to reinvent themselves to some degree, and they have the capital to do that, as they have done many times before,” he said. “I don’t see any wholesale closures there.”