I’ve been looking forward to the release of a book called “The Book of Basketball” by Bill Simmons. Simmons is one of my favorite columnists from ESPN.
I considered pre-ordering the book on Amazon. But while I was in Bellevue this afternoon, I decided to swing by Barnes and Noble and buy the book. It wasn’t in stock. As I was about to leave, the Barnes and Noble employee asked if I’d like to be notified by email when the book arrived.
Sure, why not. I gave him my email and he said, “That book is $30 in store.”
“In store?”
“Yes, in store price is $30. That means you want it now and will pick it up from the store.”
“But you don’t have it now. The same book is $16.50 at Amazon”, I tell him.
“You can always order it from our website, where I’m sure it’s less than $30.”
I left the store shaking my head. As much as I want to support local shops, $30 is quite the markup for a book. Does Barnes and Noble want my business? I left with doubts.
What if the employee had offered to ship the book directly to my house at the same price ($17.55) I can purchase the book from the Barnes and Noble website? I would have purchased it on the spot.
It’s only one book and I’m just some guy off the street. But Barnes and Noble missed an opportunity to sell me a book today. And more important, I doubt I’ll go back the next time I’m looking for a new hardcover.
The Amazon website was more helpful than the Barnes and Noble employee. I came home from work and ordered two books and some supplies from Amazon. I’m sure it won’t be the last time.
CBS did an interesting story regarding book sales and predatory pricing. In light of today's subject, I thought you might find the story of interest…http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/10/31/eveni…
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I hope the small book stores like Elliot Bay Books in Pioneer Square can hold on. I'm willing to pay more to support the local shops but probably not 100% markup over online prices.
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Unless I need a book right away, I've been treating Barnes and Noble like a library: check out a book in the store, and buy it online (usually not from B&N web site). Recently, our B&N membership expired and I elected to not renew. There's simply no value in it anymore. The “savings” does not justify the annual fee at all.
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