Independent bookstore owners are not sure whether Borders Books expected bankruptcy filing this week will be good news for their businesses.
Analysts expect Borders will close 200 or more stores as part of any bankruptcy plan.
When Borders Books and other mega-bookstore chains started opening 40 years ago, it seemed like the end for many small local bookstores. They found it difficult to compete with the big stores with their wider selections, coffee bars and other amenities. But the obituary for the corner bookstore was a bit premature.
Now that online book sales and e-book readers are shrinking the market for big-box bookstores, the smaller footprint booksellers suddenly have a brighter future. Deb Leonard is the executive director of the Great Lakes Independent Bookseller Association.
“Those independent stores in those neighborhoods will benefit because people need a place to go.”
Leonard says, in some cases, local bookstores might consider taking over former Borders locations.
