Remember the boom in Yogurt shops? Where are the big Yogurt chains now? What happened?
The problem is that yogurt was a product that could be sold anywhere as long as there was room enough for a machine. Hence this is one of the problems with bookstores. It is not only the fall in reading rates but also the saturation of outlets selling books. Grocery stores, discount stores and warehouse clubs have small bookstore sized sections selling popular books. This peels off enough business to sink many bookstores. Combine the “everywhere” availability with a drop in pleasure reading and you have a recipe for a long term death spiral. Even B&N may be fighting a long term losing battle. If shareholder return isn’t high enough, then it’s over.
Now the real problem is that the supply of books is booming. If B&N and Borders are gone, we’re left with small sections next to appliances and the internet. That’s a hard world for authors to think about but give it ten years. The question is how do we stop this from happening?
http://DTPollard.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LepUS7wFjt4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifafZEK3h8o
The problem is that yogurt was a product that could be sold anywhere as long as there was room enough for a machine. Hence this is one of the problems with bookstores. It is not only the fall in reading rates but also the saturation of outlets selling books. Grocery stores, discount stores and warehouse clubs have small bookstore sized sections selling popular books. This peels off enough business to sink many bookstores. Combine the “everywhere” availability with a drop in pleasure reading and you have a recipe for a long term death spiral. Even B&N may be fighting a long term losing battle. If shareholder return isn’t high enough, then it’s over.
Now the real problem is that the supply of books is booming. If B&N and Borders are gone, we’re left with small sections next to appliances and the internet. That’s a hard world for authors to think about but give it ten years. The question is how do we stop this from happening?
http://DTPollard.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LepUS7wFjt4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifafZEK3h8o
