RIP Franchises of our youths

[thatguy]

I'm not dead yet!

https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/09/04/b...ovid-shop/

Books Inc. finds buyer in effort to keep doors open

Retailer would have to ‘wind down’ its business if last-gasp sale fails: court docs
George Avalos
September 4, 2025 at 11:15 AM PDT

Books Inc. store at 317 Castro Street in Mountain View. (Google Maps)

Books Inc., a Bay Area bookseller whose roots stretch back to the 19th century, says it has found a buyer, but warns it might be forced to cease operations if the last-ditch attempt at a sale fails.

Barnes & Noble Booksellers, a retailer that itself has closed some stores, has emerged as the sole candidate to buy Books Inc., according to documents on file with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Barnes & Noble agreed to pay $3.25 million, according to a letter of intent dated July 7.


Books Inc. store at 1491 Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley. (Google Maps)

The potential purchase appears to be an all-or-nothing gambit to survive, a court filing by Books Inc. Chief Executive Officer Andrew Perham indicates. Books Inc., which has its headquarters in San Leandro, filed for bankruptcy in January.

“If the proposed sale is approved, it will pay the debtor’s secured, administrative, and priority claimants in full and will provide for a meaningful distribution to unsecured creditors,” Perham stated in court papers posted on Sept. 3. “Without court approval of the proposed sale, the debtor would likely need to shut its doors and begin a wind-down process.”

Books Inc. has scouted widely for buyers but with minimal success.

“The debtor received a nonbinding offer from Barnes & Noble Booksellers,” Perham reported to the bankruptcy court. “The debtor has received no other offers and only a limited number of inquiries, despite continued efforts to solicit other interested buyers.”

Books Inc. told the court that its origins date back to 1851 and that the company has operated under its current name since 1946.

The bookseller operates in 10 brick-and-mortar retail locations in a variety of Bay Area venues, including shopping centers and two locations at San Francisco International Airport.

“The debtor’s financial troubles can be traced to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused a sharp decline in sales due to shelter-in-place orders and social distancing mandates,” Perham stated in the court papers. “Although public health restrictions have ended, the pandemic triggered long-term changes in consumer behavior that reduced in-person sales.”

Foot traffic from office workers and commuters had always provided an essential revenue stream for Books Inc.

“The shopping patterns of these groups shifted significantly due to the widespread adoption of remote and hybrid work models, resulting in decreased foot traffic and revenue at many of the debtor’s retail stores,” Perham told the court.

Books Inc. was able to use the Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding to begin reorganizing its finances by successfully renegotiating its leases to reflect the new reality of reduced foot traffic.

“Despite the debtor’s progress in negotiating with its landlords, two setbacks arose,” Perham reported to the bankruptcy court. “Both involved the debtor’s SFO Airport storefronts in Terminals 2 and 3, which have historically been the debtor’s top-performing locations.”

American Airlines moved its flights to the newly renovated Terminal 1. While Southwest Airlines increased flights from Terminal 2, that wasn’t enough to offset the loss of the American Airlines passenger business, Books Inc. stated in the filing.

SFO has also launched a wide-ranging construction project at Terminal 3, which has crimped the Books Inc. business at that terminal due to construction barriers and the re-routing of potential customers away from the store.

“The impact of these challenges has been significant,” Perham told the court. “The sudden decline in sales at these SFO Airport locations, which have typically been the debtor’s highest-earning stores, has severely constrained the debtor’s cash flow.”

Books Inc. believes it could have survived independently had the SFO changes not occurred. Now, however, the retailer believes only a sale can prevent a collapse of its business. Even worse, Books Inc. might not survive long enough to complete a full-fledged reorganization effort.

“The debtor does not have sufficient cash flow to continue operations for enough time to establish, solicit, and confirm a Chapter 11 plan,” Perham told the court. “It is incurring monthly operating losses and faces a risk of insolvency if it cannot promptly pursue an alternative strategy.”

Books Inc. believes its brand won’t vanish even if it sells itself to Barnes & Noble. Perham noted that in 2024, Barnes & Noble bought the Tattered Cover bookstore chain in Colorado that had toppled into bankruptcy.

“Barnes & Noble kept the Tattered Cover name, branding, and most of its employees, and operates the stores in the spirit of their previous owner,” Perham said.

--tg

[King Bob]

I used to go into the Mountain View store occasionally when I went to the used bookstore down the street, but I didn't think either it or the Pruneyard store was all that good.

[Drunk Monk]

I liked the vibe of the Pruneyard store but it had a mediocre collection in terms of what I was reading, but my reading choices have always been esoteric so I’m a poor barometer of pop book offerings. What can I say? ACWLP4B spoiled me.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Sadness.

[King Bob]

On the other hand, Recycle Book in my corner of SJ seems to be doing very well - it's always more crowded than it used to be, and there are more clerks working as well. The same seems to be true of the Campbell store as well, but I rarely go there so I may be wrong.

I have the same problem as DM due to my esoteric tastes. Occasionally I will find something I've been searching for, but more often the used bookstore is for discovering new things.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

My friend who runs a new & used bookstore here in Da City says that used book sales are exploding. This is a good thing for used books stores, but also an ominous sign for the economy

[Drunk Monk]

I still miss Logos

[King Bob]

What bookstore is that? I think all the new/used bookstores I knew in SF are gone, except for Green Apple. I haven't been there in years, but last time I thought it wasn't as good and a lot of sections had noticeably fewer books.

I do have to say that the original Books Inc in Town and Country was a good store.

[Drunk Monk]

Logos was at the bay end of Pacific mall in downtown Santa Cruz. Two stories jam packed with books. The wife of my Kung Fu brother worked there for decades. She’d give me top dollar when I’d dump a shopping bag of book samples I used to get when KFTC reigned. They had the best martial arts section of anywhere. They also had a tremendous art book catalog and a thick selection of sci-di fantasy paperbacks. I spent days in there.

It died prior to the pandemic. A Christian brewery was going to move in but bailed with the pandemic and it’s still empty.

[King Bob]

I should have specified that I was asking the Yeti. I remember Logos. Did they have records too or am I confusing them with another defunct store?

[Drunk Monk]

Yes, Logos did have records. Now all the better records went to Streetlight Records down the street. The best books ended up in Bad Animal, a fusion bookstore and restaurant/bar.

[King Bob]

I used to trade records at Logos in the 80s.

Last time I was downtown over there, which is about 10 years now, there was another bookstore that was pretty good. It was on the left side of the street (with the right side being the one closer to the big parking lot and the Civic). I seem to remember hearing or reading that they also closed.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

What bookstore is that? I think all the new/used bookstores I knew in SF are gone, except for Green Apple. I haven't been there in years, but last time I thought it wasn't as good and a lot of sections had noticeably fewer books.

I do have to say that the original Books Inc in Town and Country was a good store.

My friend runs Borderlands Books on Haight, a SF/Fant/Mystery bookstore. Dog Eared Books on Valencia is going strong (Gen interest). Adobe Books on 24th St survives as well (politics).

[thatguy]

I still have credit for Logos somewhere...

--tg

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Yes, Logos did have records. Now all the better records went to Streetlight Records down the street. The best books ended up in Bad Animal, a fusion bookstore and restaurant/bar.

Bad Animal is fantastic. H & I walked in and in less than 10 minutes we hit almost $100 in 20th Century American Literature.