Bookstores

In a video posted to YouTube, Greenlight Bookstore owner Jessica Stockton Bagnulo announced that the Flatbush Avenue location will close on May 14. Bagnulo explains that the location is not “making enough sales to cover the costs of operating it,” and that the company’s other locations can no longer support it. Some booksellers will be “moving on,” and management is working with the union to make that process “as equitable and transparent as we can.” Bagnulo is quick to explain that the closure is not due to Amazon’s destructive influence on brick-and-mortar stores, a decline in book sales overall (“[people] […]

Canadian retailer Indigo now admits that their recent cybersecurity incident was a ransomware attack — they almost always are — and also concedes that at least “some” current and former employee data was compromised. They report, “We are notifying all affected employees. We have also notified and are cooperating with law enforcement.” The company adds on its site, “We deeply regret this incident and are committed to ensuring employees have the support they need.”

Chip Gaines has purchased the buildings housing Booked Up, the bookstore in Archer City, Texas formerly owned by Lonesome Dove author Larry McMurtry. The store has been closed for over a year, following McMurtry’s death in 2021. Archer City was McMurtry’s hometown, and he ran the store for decades. He bequeathed it to longtime manager Khristal Collins. CNN says “the deed records show the properties were sold for ten dollars ‘and other good and valuable consideration'” and the store contains “a breathtaking collection of books.” Collins launched an online “Booked Up” bookstore on Wednesday, selling rare and fine books to […]

McNally Jackson opened a new location, its fifth, in Rockefeller Center in Manhattan. They wrote on Twitter, “This store is our effort to resurrect the lost tradition of grand, midtown bookstores. Please come see it, and tell us what you think.” The 7,000-square-foot store is located at 1 Rockefeller Plaza.

After a cybersecurity incident felled its website and many in-store services on Feb. 8, Indigo announced on social media that stores can now process all forms of payment, as well as returns and exchanges. The company put up a placeholder site where customers can browse books and other merchandise that’s available in store, but the site can’t accept purchases or check the status of previously-placed online orders. The Indigo app is also unavailable. In an FAQ on the website, the company said their investigation “has found no indication” that customer data, including credit card information, was compromised. The company does […]

The bookseller is modifying its longstanding membership program, making it more…complicated. The $25 membership is turning into a $40 “premium” program. The main enhancements are extending the 10 percent discount to most online purchases, some additional cafe enhancements, and a “free” tote bag every year. A new initiative offers a free rewards program, providing rewards “stamps” in exchange for your personal data and letting the store market to you. (“Stamps” is the same term used for rewards points in Waterstones’ long-running program, if you’re wondering why they chose that paradigm.) The WSJ tries to position it as having something to […]