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Tough times continue for book stores

Reports were published in the US yesterday that book retailer Barnes & Noble plans to close a third of its stores over the next ten years.

I expect a look back in ten years time would wonder at such an under estimation. The Barnes & Noble model of mega book store is challenged in terms of retail space cost, labour cost, inventory cost as well as disruption caused by devices such as the iPad and Kindle.

Just as shopping centre newsagents have found in recent years that smaller format stores are a smarter move, mega bookstores will fade to just a few.

For a brighter future, bookshops will expand into other areas. Newsagents should expect some to turn their sights on products traditional to our channel.

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Book retailing

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