RIP Borderland Books

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

My fave-rave scyfy/fantasy/mystery bookstore is closing. I am quite sad as this was one of my few "old haunts" that I could go to where I was like Norm in Cheers. And they had books, too.

The reason is that he can't absorb the mandated minimum-wage hike. Best balanced article is here

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/minimum-wage-dilemma-san-francisco">http://www.newyorker.com/business/curre ... -francisco</a><!-- m -->

If anyone need bookshelves, this would be a good time to get some.

[King Bob]

Not closing! And the story went all the way to the UK. (The Guardian does have great book coverage.)
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/fe...owdfunding

[Drunk Monk]

Paly stepped up. But then it was run by a committee of concerned citizens who didn't know how to run a bookstore. A parent of one of T's classmates was on it and he was an idiot...an affluent idiot but an idiot all the same. Honestly, if the Kepler family couldn't keep it going, why would a gaggle of amateurs be able to revive it? Kepler's is still open now but its dying a slow death of a thousand cuts. Its selection is getting weaker and weaker.

Hopefully S.F. will be more wise.

[cranefly]

Yeah, well, I like bookstores as much as the next bibliophile and would love to see Borderland Books survive.
Still, my critical eye keeps twitching Morse code for, "A business is a business is a business."
And if Borderlands can only survive by means of a flotilla of volunteers and monetary contributions, well, I begin to perceive it as an anachronism propped up by deniers of a brave new world.

Deep down I wonder if the owner (who I like and greatly respect) simply lacks the business acumen to figure out a viable strategy.

As things stand, the only way I see it surviving for the long-term is if it fills its shelves with Huxley's A Brave New World.

Okay, enough pointless blather. I really don't know what I'm talking about. Just putting off going to the grocery.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

I know the owner very well (he was one of the people that I consulted when I was thinking of opening Victory) and have a tremendous respect for his business acumen. Business is driven by numbers and his numbers were solid; as he put it, it was a "cold calculus" that drove him to plan to close rather than die the slow death of a thousand cuts that we have all seen bookstores, etc., do.

I was on the business side of books for a number of years, and have watched him grow his business, trying new product lines over the years (some worked, some didn't). He just came off of his best year. The truth about many small businesses is that the margins are not big, so when they learned that their payroll was going to increase a little over 30% in 3 years, he new that he couldn't raise his book prices to match; books have prices printed on them and the Amazon/Big Chains have convinced many customers that they should not pay full price for a book. Payroll is his second biggest expense, after rent.

Their decision to quit while they were on top financially was smart; Alan has been making smart business decisions for years. He initially rejected a membership solution as his is a for-profit business. When he had a big meeting of his customers to see if they had any ideas that he and his crew missed, the one thing that was pushed for was a membership scheme. The customers convinced him to offer as many perks as they could think of and then see who would bite. The response was fast and overwhelming. As any of us bibliophiles knows, a good bookstore creates a community. After making the pitch, he had all the memberships he needed in 48 hours. The community responded quickly and decisively.

Thinking about how many good reads have been recommended by the staff, how much "book gossip" and "small biz kvetching" I've had with Alan, Jude, etc., seen how well they treat authors and support writing and events, good chats with strangers and "book acquaintances", it was a no-brainer for me to cough up $100 for continued access to the community of nerds that feed my reading needs.

[cranefly]

Thanks for the info and insight, Yeti. I really haven't been following this as close as I ought to, not reading the many articles and interviews on it.

It's far easier just to form blind opinions.

Lady Cranefly plunked down $100 as well on a recent visit.

[King Bob]

Isn't that area getting a bit more genteel as well? At least I thought so last time I was there. That must be a concern as well since rent will surely increase as it does.

I am not buying as many books as I used to - partly because I can walk across campus to the library (and use Link+). I buy the ones I can't get, and I like to buy anything that I think I will certainly re-read (not that many). Even so, I would be very sad if my neighborhood bookstore (Recycle Books) closed. I can walk there and they don't mind if I bring the Schnoodle in with me. (I do carry her out of deference to the resident cats.)

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Good to know that Recycle Books still exists. That was a long bus ride to get there back in the day.

[Drunk Monk]

I'm in walking distance of Santa Cruz Book Shop and Logo (used books), both of which a top-notch stores. It's heavenly.

[thatguy]

Capitola Book Cafe died last year. It was sad. I really liked it. Great zine collection. Good music. Decent book selection. A go-to place for gifts. I've seen a number of authors speak there, and the cafe was decent. They did know how to make coffee. I'd been going there since before they moved from the spot where Tony & Alba's pizza not resides, across the parking lot.

Bookshop SC is good, but I just don't seem to make it there as much. And Logos...those people can be fucktards sometimes. Lot's of old-school Santa Cruz attitude if you are trying to sell books.

--tg

[King Bob]

Have to point out to Greg (and the rest of you) that Recycle Books is not the same store you may remember on Santa Clara Street between 3rd and 4th in downtown SJ. They sold the store, and it is now on The Alameda at Race Street, across from Greenlee's Bakery. It is probably a bit smaller, but the selection is still pretty good - SF and fiction are probably the largest sections, followed by history. They cull often and I have found good stuff on the sale rack. They also have another store in downtown Campbell.

[cranefly]

To any other sponsors:
Are any of you going to the special event tomorrow (Thursday)?
The Lady and I are considering.

Sounds like there's a scotch-tasting event coming up in May. I think it's also restricted to sponsors, but not certain.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Belated "Yes". It was nice chatting with LCF. Sorry you couldn't make it. It was a very nice gathering of socially awkward people, a tribal meeting of the citizens of Nerdistan. I prolly won't make the Scotch tasting due to my schedule. I barely made this gathering as it was.