In their quarterly SEC filing for the period ending October 26, Barnes & Noble reported that just before the close of their second quarter, on October 16, the SEC notified the company that it was being investigated. The agency’s New York office is looking into: “(1) the Company’s restatement of earnings announced on July 29, 2013, and (2) a separate matter related to a former non-executive employee’s allegation that the company improperly allocated certain Information Technology expenses between its Nook and Retail segments for purposes of segment reporting.” BN says it “is cooperating with the SEC, including responding to requests […]
Bookstores
Sue Monk Kidd Tops January Indie Next List
The ABA listed their picks for next month: The Invention of Wings, by Sue Monk Kidd The Kept, by James Scott The Ascendant: A Thriller, by Drew Chapman A Star for Mrs. Blake, by April Smith Little Failure: A Memoir, by Gary Shteyngart Unremarried Widow: A Memoir, by Artis Henderson Badluck Way: A Year on the Ragged Edge of the West, by Bryce Andrews The Bird Skinner, by Alice Greenway In the Blood, by Lisa Unger Shovel Ready, by Adam Sternbergh If Only You People Could Follow Directions: A Memoir, by Jessica Hendry Nelson The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles, by […]
Bookselling: Diesel Puts Malibu Location for Sale; Bank Street Bookstore Won’t Renew Lease; Marcus Books May Stay Put
Diesel is placing its Malibu location for sale after more than nine years of operation (and five months after opening another store in Larkspur, CA). Co-owner John Evans told the Malibu Times that financial constraints and a need to focus on a growing number of independent shops outside of Malibu necessitated the move. “We’re just struggling to keep the [Malibu] bookstore, to keep people coming.” Evans added he hopes a local buyer will step up: “In general, bookstores are best when local people that own the place and live in the place work in the place,” he said. “I don’t […]
France’s Second Largest Bookstore Chain Files for Bankruptcy
The quickly deteriorating situation at France’s Chapitre bookstore chain has led the subsidiary of Najafi-owned Actissia to file for bankruptcy. The group employees 1,200 people at 57 stores across France. In recent weeks, the country’s largest bookseller Fnac had indicated some interest in acquiring up to 20 of Chapitre’s stores in medium-sized cities where Fnac does not have a presence. A number of publishers had stopped shipping to Chapitre after the parent company announced in early October it would sell off the stores (or close them in no buyers could be found).
Amazon Unveils Hopes for Delivery Drones
Amazon ceo Jeff Bezos attracted attention for a Sunday night appearance on 60 Minutes, where he introduced the world to the company’s prototype “octocopters”: small “Prime Air” delivery drones they hope to deploy. A promotional video from Amazon describes it as “something the team has been working on in our next generation R&D lab. The goal of this new delivery system is to get packages into customers’ hands in 30 minutes or less using unmanned aerial vehicles. Putting Prime Air into commercial use will take some number of years as we advance technology and wait for the necessary FAA rules […]
The President’s Book Purchases
Once again, President Obama included a bookstore shopping spree as part of his commemoration of the American Express-created Small Business Saturday. This time he and his daughters visited Politics & Prose, where he spent approximately 30 speaking with customers and purchasing the following books. He said they were selected to cover readers of all ages, “from 5 to 52” (his own age). According to the White House, President Obama bought: The Lowland, Jhumpa Lahiri The Ballad of the Sad Cafe, Carson McCullers Red Sparrow, Jason Matthews The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini Ragtime, E.L. Doctorow The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini Buddha […]