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Thursday, March 26, 2009

Books / Video / News / Music Why I Might Give A Poop if Borders Closes

Posted by Marjorie Skinner on Thu, Mar 26, 2009 at 12:00 PM

Like so many other big-box giants, Borders continues to falter. Consumerist has been monitoring its decline, and posted this yesterday:

Yesterday's post about Borders closing down its unprofitable CD and DVD sections prompted a tip from the owner of a small music label. He says his distributor has already cut off shipments to Borders once for nonpayment (in November 2008), and on Monday the distributor warned labels that they'll have to agree not to hold him "liable on any future shipments to Borders in case they file for bankruptcy." Borders' CFO left in January, which is rarely a good sign for a troubled company. And this morning, the Detroit Free Press notes that the bookseller is facing being delisted from the New York Stock Exchange. We may not have to wait long to find out; CEO Ron Marshall is hosting a conference call with analysts and investors next week.

Full disclosure: I pulled a few shifts at the downtown Borders register during my early days as a Merc intern, and what started out as a mellow job where I was encouraged to read when business was slow quickly developed into a drag, to put it generally, when the managers started pressuring us to sour every transaction by constantly pushing a goddamn e-mail newsletter that 99.9% of the population wanted nothing at all to do with, ever, eventually driving me to spend most of my lunch breaks around the corner at the Yamhill Pub, where I would suck down as many well drinks as I could cram into a half hour (3) in order to fortify myself for the rest of the shift.

I return to the downtown Borders precisely once a year: Christmas. And I always feel like a jerk for it. But all of my relatives want media presents, and while I can get everything on the books list covered at Powell's lickity-split, Borders is one of a handful of equally corporate options (Freddy's, whatever's at the mall) that I can think of to buy, say a box set of The Sopranos or Battlestar Galactica. I'm not under the impression that the downfall of a major book/music/dvd goliath is going to directly translate into a sproutage of indie stores to take up the slack, but wouldn't it be nice if Powell's, or any independent store, really, started to at least sell DVDs online? Isn't this one of those "disasters that can be viewed as opportunity" or whatever those half-full glass people say?

 

Comments (3) RSS

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1
Is anyone suprised? Borders has always had the worst prices for DVD's. Sure, their selection is good, but why would I pay $25 for the exact same DVD that has been selling for $8 at Fred Meyer for the last four years?
Posted by Marq on March 26, 2009 at 1:01 PM · Report
2
Interesting thing about your supposed time working at Borders, Marjorie. I worked at that very Borders for a few months after transferring from out of state and quit because the working environment- particularly the awful, awful management there- was atrocious and extremely stressful, and the least of it had anything to do with pushing the Borders Rewards thing. Also, lunch breaks were an hour, not a half-hour as they typically make people work 9 hour shifts there, so you had to take one of those hours as a break.

I fully agree that the media section was always a ripoff, though. And the fucking place closes at 9. In downtown. With Powell's a relatively short walk away, and open until 11, and Everyday Music just a bit further up Burnside and open until Midnight everyday, 365 days a year- and I believe they sell DVDs too, though their selection isn't huge or anything. Downtown is sorely lacking a good place to buy DVDs outside of big chain stores.
Posted by el cubano on March 26, 2009 at 1:25 PM · Report
3
When I worked there in the mid-90's it was the same, we took our lunch breaks at the Rialto. There was a union organizing push that a lot of us got behind and had the Ann Arbor office flying out union-busting lawyers from D.C. Heady days.
Posted by Ralston on March 26, 2009 at 1:43 PM · Report

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