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Barnes & Noble facts for kids
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| Public (NYSE: BKS) | |
| Industry | Retail (Specialty) |
| Predecessor | Arthur Hinds and Company |
| Founded | Wheaton, Illinois, U.S. (1873 as a printing business) New York City, New York, U.S. (1917 first bookstore opened) |
| Founder | Charles Barnes William Barnes G. Clifford Noble |
| Headquarters |
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U.S.
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Number of locations
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777 stores at 2009-05-21 |
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Key people
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Leonard Riggio, Chairman William Lynch, CEO Steve Riggio, Vice Chair Mitchell S. Klipper, CEO, Retail |
| Products | Barnes & Noble Booksellers B. Dalton Scribner's Bookstores Bookstop Doubleday Bookstores Sterling Publishing Co. SparkNotes |
| Revenue |  US$5.12 Billion (FY 2009) |
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Operating income
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US$143 Million (FY 2009) |
| US$75.9 Million (FY 2009) |
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| Total assets |  US$2.99 Billion (FY 2009) |
| Total equity | US$922 Million (FY 2009) |
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Number of employees
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40,000 (2008) |
Barnes & Noble's flagship store at 105 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, New York has been operating since 1932.
Barnes & Noble, Inc. is the biggest bookseller in the United States. It runs many bookstores called Barnes & Noble Booksellers. Their main office is in New York City. Barnes & Noble also used to run smaller stores called B. Dalton Booksellers in shopping malls. These stores are now closed.
The company is famous for its large, fancy stores. Many of them have a café where you can buy Starbucks coffee. Most stores also sell magazines, newspapers, DVDs, graphic novels, gifts, games, and music. They used to sell video games through their GameStop stores. But in 2004, GameStop became its own separate company.
As of October 2009, Barnes & Noble had 777 stores. These stores were in all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C.. The company also runs 636 college bookstores. These stores serve almost 4 million students and 250,000 teachers across the country.
Contents
History of Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble started in 1873. Charles Barnes opened a business that printed books in Wheaton, Illinois. His son, William, and G. Clifford Noble opened their first real bookstore in 1917. This store was in New York City. It opened during World War I. In 1932, during the Great Depression, the bookstore moved. It is now at 18th Street and Fifth Avenue.
Leonard Riggio bought the business in 1971. He helped the company grow a lot. In 1974, Barnes & Noble was the first bookstore to advertise on television. A year later, it was the first bookseller in America to offer discounts on books. They sold New York Times bestsellers for 40% off.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Barnes & Noble opened smaller discount stores. Later, they decided to focus on bigger stores instead. They also started to publish their own books. These books were mostly older titles that were no longer being printed. Selling them through mail-order allowed Barnes & Noble to reach customers all over the country.
Expanding the Business
Barnes & Noble kept growing in the 1980s. In 1987, they bought the B. Dalton chain of bookstores. Most B. Dalton stores were located in shopping malls. This purchase made Barnes & Noble a nationwide company. The last B. Dalton stores closed in January 2010. Some people say that Barnes & Noble's growth has made it harder for smaller, local bookstores to stay open.
The company first started selling books online in the late 1980s. But their official website did not launch until May 1997. Today, the website offers over 1 million different book titles.
In 2002, Leonard Riggio's brother, Stephen Riggio, became the company's CEO. He held this position until March 2010.
Publishing Books
Barnes & Noble also publishes some of the books it sells. They often reprint older books that are no longer protected by copyright. Or they get the rights to print books in English from other publishers. Barnes & Noble also creates new collections of stories or books by using their own editors.
The company started publishing books in the 1980s. They began by reissuing books that were out of print. For example, The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense has sold over 250,000 copies. Another reissued book, The Columbia History of the World, has sold over 1 million copies.
Since then, Barnes & Noble has grown its publishing business. They bought SparkNotes, which is an educational website and publishing company. They also bought Sterling Publishing in 2003, which publishes "how-to" books. In 2008, they launched Quamut.
From 1992 to 2003, Barnes & Noble released a series of classic books. These were for both adults and children. They were called the Barnes & Noble Classics Collection. At first, they were only available in hardcover. In 2003, Barnes & Noble updated this series. They released the books in hardcover, paperback, and smaller pocket-sized editions.
Cafés in Stores
The first Barnes & Noble store to have a café was in Springfield, New Jersey. This happened in 1993. Since then, most stores have been built or changed to include a café. The cafés sell Starbucks drinks, Harney & Sons or Tazo Tea, FIJI Bottled Water, and baked goods from The Cheesecake Factory. They also sell candy from Godiva Chocolatiers, sandwiches, and other special items. Even though Barnes & Noble owns the cafés, the staff follows Starbucks' rules for making drinks.
In 2004, Barnes & Noble started offering Wi-Fi in the café areas of some stores. They used the AT&T FreedomLink network. By 2006, all 777 stores offered Wi-Fi. Since July 27, 2009, Wi-Fi has been free for all customers.
Community Involvement
Barnes & Noble hires people to work with local communities. These "community relations managers" help organize events in the stores. These events include authors visiting, story times for children, and book clubs. These managers also work with local schools and groups. They help promote reading and the arts.
One important thing Barnes & Noble does is sponsor a summer reading program for kids. This program helps promote reading and gives over 2 million books to children each year. To encourage more reading during the summer, Barnes & Noble has a special challenge. If children in grades 1 to 6 read 8 books and write about them, Barnes & Noble gives them a free book!
Barnes & Noble Nook
The Barnes & Noble Nook is an electronic book reader. The company created it using the Android system. The Nook was announced in the United States on October 20, 2009. It was released on November 30, 2009, for US$259. The Nook competes with other e-readers like the Amazon Kindle and Sony Reader. It has Wi-Fi and AT&T 3G wireless internet. It also has a six-inch E Ink screen and a smaller color touchscreen for controls.
College Bookstores
Barnes & Noble College Booksellers, Inc. is a part of the company. It runs bookstores at more than 600 colleges. This part of the company used to be owned by Leonard Riggio, the company chairman. Its main office is in Basking Ridge, New Jersey.
Barnes & Noble College Booksellers says that its store at Fifth Avenue and 18th Street in New York City is the "world's largest bookstore." This store sells many textbooks, medical books, and medical supplies. It also sells the regular books found in other Barnes & Noble stores.
Images for kids
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Barnes & Noble in a former theater in Rochester, Minnesota
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B&N's store on Union Square in New York City has four floors of retail space.
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Clifford Noble in 1893
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Barnes & Noble corporate headquarters, 122 (122–124) Fifth Avenue between West 17th and 18th Streets in the Flatiron District neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City
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5th Avenue store sign
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Barnes & Noble in Lynnwood, Washington, using the former 1990s logo
Related pages
See also
In Spanish: Barnes & Noble para niños