Who needs a bookstore?

abs276 · January 2008

haha, i know, about the video store part, but i really am interested to see if there's a mail-in, monthly fee type service!

wait, that was the joke part, right? j/k.

poppy13 · January 2008

The Bookcrossing is an interesting idea. Hope people don't think its a "bomb" and call the cops. :roll:

I've been using GoodReads.com for a bit now. Kind of like Facebook but only books. Now that I've got a few friends linked to me, their book lists are completely different from mine. But now I can get a little bit of their book suggestions and I can get them into my books.

sprite · January 2008

I like Goodreads.com too. It's funny; I work in publishing, and I discuss books with my colleagues a lot more now that we're all on Goodreads than I did before. One reason is that we work in children's books, so we don't have to be plugged into the adult scene to do our jobs. But it's also because there are just so many books out there, we're not reading the same ones at the same time. That's why it's great to see people's ratings - it's much easier to get ideas that way.

abs276 · January 2008

it does exist! maybe i should have googled it earlier...

anyone used this book "renting" site?

http://www.booksfree.com/

roz · January 2008

Please don't open a bookstore! You're almost guaranteed to lose your shirt. Adam's business model is a decent one. By relying on used books -- supplemented with a small but interesting selection of new titles -- he keeps his margins low and distinguishes himself from the competition. But the whole bookstore/cafe thing can be a nightmare. Of course everyone on this board wants to hang out there. But that's just the problem: they'll hang out, maybe buy a coffee every 3 hours, thumb through your books and mags, mess the place up and then leave having bought nothing. If you really want to do this, figure out ALL your overheads (rent, utilities, insurance, maintenance and supplies, wages, shrinkage, damage, credit card services, inventory software, etc etc) and then back into what your weekly cash register receipts would need to be to pay all those bills AND give you a tiny income. You'll find it's very tough to make the math work.

Btw, Borders is not going into One Hanson Place. They pulled out because they are going through a corporate restructuring, and also the landmarks restrictions on the interior made retrofitting the space too expensive and inefficient.

prospectus · January 2008

Subject: Washington Ave.

Washington might be a great idea for the long haul with a long-term lease, especially near the Museum. Today rents might be cheap but if you look at the street, it was built to handle more density and higher traffic than Vanderbilt. The buildings are taller and grander than the ones on Vanderbilt and there seem to be more retail spaces, even through some are shuttered now.

c balla · February 2008

I am a bit biased because it's my closest avenue, but I really do feel Underhill might be the best choice for a bookstore, particularly in the Lincoln / Saint Johns / Sterling area (least chance of complaining neighbors if there is a cafe as well).

I have a hard time picturing a bookstore on a loud, wide strip like Washington. Underhill is quaint, and has a lot of potential for small business, at least at the edges near the Plaza and Atlantic Ave.

I'm also big into used books ... what's the inventory going to be like?

pitu · February 2008

Unless someone wants to set you up in the new building across from the main library (ha)
I'm thinking proximity to BAM would be more important for someone who needs to make a biz work. I wonder if you could get space in one of the new Cultural District buildings...they are taking applications from arts orgs for those spaces, so who knows...
Then you have the natural foot traffic of people going to movies and shows at BAM, or going to Target (shudder) and can be the answer to Where Do You Want To Meet Before BAM. And you're on the transportation hub where many of us can walk home from.

McNally Robinson's events schedule is impressive - def. one of those bookstores I make a point of stopping into when I'm near Prince St.
Although I actually buy more books at The Strand, used and reviewer copies.

Who needs a bookstore?

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