eReaders

I've recently taken parttime work at my local Barnes & Noble.  It's one of those small dreams come true, not because my dream is to be a book salesman.  I'm already convinced that I don't want to do this the rest of my life.  But I have always liked Barnes & Noble.  This is the store I would go to in between classes, or when I had a day off, or if I wanted something to read.

It was amusing.  My boss is definitely a salesman at heart.  His philosophy is that if a customer has left the store without paying money, the store failed that day.  I will never say anything to him but my favorite thing about Barnes & Noble was curling up on a chair or floor and read the books right there.  I love the atmosphere of the store itself.  I love browsing the shelves.  And I appreciated how the store allowed me to do this.  Complete opposite views from customer to salesman.

Still, I'm happy to be working here.  If nothing else, I wanted to see how the bookstore works from this end.  That was the main reason this was the first store I applied to for work.

What surprised me most when I was first interviewed was the advice to research the Nook.  That was fine; after all, that's their new product.

Nope, it's not just their new product.  It's 30% of their business.

That floored me.  Nearly one-third of their work is centered on the eReader and boy, they are determined to put Apple and Amazon in their place.  Barnes & Noble are wanting to tell the Kindle and iPad to jump off a bridge and have a Nook library in every home or at the touch of your hand.

But that's not what's going through my head.  I'm looking at my collection of paperbacks and hardcovers and wondering if they'll go the way of the VHS and the thought saddens me.  I mean, one-third!  That percentage can only increase.  And my bookcases are edging to being useless bits of furniture.

If Barnes & Noble actually succeeds in making the Nook not just the best, but the only, way to read, there is going to be some major remodel and downsizing.

But, print's not dead yet.  It's just having a heart attack.