Borders Books closing :( (Bangor, Brunswick, Saco: how much, houses, purchase)

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by Nor'Eastah

Ya just can't fight progress. Who'd have known that the internet would send the bricks-and-mortars into a tailspin? Lots of other places will disappear, too, and it won't just be the economy that does it. It'll be the internet, too.

But then, look at it as growing pains. Did anybody miss the iceman when refrigerators became available? Anybody miss the milkman's jangle at 5 am when you can get fresh milk at the corner? Anybody miss the horse 'patties' in the road once the automobile came along? Progress always makes us nostalgic for the good ol' days, but we still don't want to give up our conveniences.

Get rid of your computer, anybody? Anybody?

every time i see a western movie with horses going down the main street- i gotta believe the smell of horse **** was everywhere


travel agencies that use to be in every town is also a casualty of the internet

ebay is a phenominal website- but every time i want to buy something, i think it's taking away from a local business, but then again, the walmarts have infiltrated maine with cheap goods from slave labor overseas

ink cartridges for printers i do buy off ebay, it is less than half the price of walmarts
the last tires i bought were off ebay- 30.00 less each than anywhere local- even with the shipping


for retailers to compete, they have to change their gameplan- the traditional margins of some items- like hardware use to be 50%- good luck with that in todays marketplace

[Submariner]

I was once told that when you see an obsolete herd of old dinosaurs dying off into extinction the best thing to do is to stomp on their eggs.

The old ways are dead, long live progress.

[gcberry]

you mean people in Maine actually READ? (just kidding)
I bought bookcases from a closing Borders. I paid $5 each but someone I know got them for FREE. They are super sturdy (think about it: they don't want bookcases that will fall down on customers). You might be able to make a deal!

[Mark S.]

Originally Posted by RHB

I read where there was a company looking to purchase a group of the stores, sadly, Bangor's store isn't one they are looking to purchase.

Actually, it is. There are 3 Borders in Maine: South Portland, Bangor, and Brunswick. Books-A-Million has made an offer on the South Portland and Bangor stores. Very sad for Brunswick. It was a very nice store.

[RHB]

That would be great! The article I read we weren't on the list.

[S Williams]

I was once told that when you see an obsolete herd of old dinosaurs dying off into extinction the best thing to do is to stomp on their eggs.

The old ways are dead, long live progress.

Yikes!...so graphic....
I realize and appreciate the many advances in science, technology, etc. However, ( and maybe it's just that I am a dinosaur myself ), but to me, there is something nice about the simple feel/ texture/smell of a book to hold. You can mark your page simply and put it on your nightstand- and pick it up if you can't sleep later in the night...
But, maybe I haven't given the e-readers a valid chance yet.

Thanks for everyone's thoughts.

[Submariner]

Originally Posted by S Williams

Yikes! ... so graphic .... I realize and appreciate the many advances in science, technology, etc. However, ( and maybe it's just that I am a dinosaur myself ), but to me, there is something nice about the simple feel / texture / smell of a book to hold. You can mark your page simply and put it on your nightstand- and pick it up if you can't sleep later in the night ... But, maybe I haven't given the e-readers a valid chance yet.

Thanks for everyone's thoughts.

I understand.

In my career, we had mainframe computers doing long formulas. When I started, we all carried sliderules. We were expected to be doing the formulas every hour ourselves to check on the computers. In that era two calculators would commonly produce different answers, so everything had to be double or triple checked. By the end of my career, I was alone in carrying a sliderule. It had been decided that with the advancement of the computers, errors today are an oddity, so it is no longer seen as needed to have techs verifying the math.

When I was told about the dinosaurs, they meant 'me' [and my era of techs].



I like books. We have collected a large library of our own. Mostly 1800s era home nursing, home economics, herbal, surgery manuals, and Bible commentaries.

[seain dublin]

Originally Posted by Nor'Eastah

Ya just can't fight progress. Who'd have known that the internet would send the bricks-and-mortars into a tailspin? Lots of other places will disappear, too, and it won't just be the economy that does it. It'll be the internet, too.

But then, look at it as growing pains. Did anybody miss the iceman when refrigerators became available? Anybody miss the milkman's jangle at 5 am when you can get fresh milk at the corner? Anybody miss the horse 'patties' in the road once the automobile came along? Progress always makes us nostalgic for the good ol' days, but we still don't want to give up our conveniences.

Get rid of your computer, anybody? Anybody?

How is it progress that Americans have less interest in reading?

[Mark S.]

Originally Posted by RHB

That would be great! The article I read we weren't on the list.

Thirty Borders locations could stay open under a Books-A-Million bid - The Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/thirty-borders-locations-could-stay-open-under-a-books-a-million-bid/2011/07/22/gIQAza6UTI_story.html - broken link)

Keep in mind that none of that is final and decided. But those are the stores Books-a-Million wants --- assuming they can work out a deal with the liquidators.

There was a rumor that they had an option for 5 more, but that rumor was never confirmed.

As for Brunswick, I do think it has a large enough customer base to support a sizeable bookstore. I'm not sure it has a large enough customer base to support the current Borders's store size. If I were Books-A-Million, I'd definitely be eyeing Brunswick or Topsham, but I'd be eyeing a different location than the one Borders currently occupies.

Of course, I hear that Bull Moose is considering expanding into books. I hope it's a big expansion.

[hxcobd]

Originally Posted by seain dublin

How is it progress that Americans have less interest in reading?

Actually, I'd venture to say that popularity in reading is growing. Colossal sales of e-readers can validate such a claim (not to mention the sheer number of devices and reading apps out on the market right now).

It's more an issue of convenience, cost, and time savings. People want things delivered to them digitally, they want them faster, and they want them cheaper. Borders did not cater to these interests, and therefore, it failed.