BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com BloggingStocks http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/media/feedlogo.gif BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Late summer bestsellers won't be enough to save the bookstores]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/08/04/late-summer-bestsellers-wont-be-enough-to-save-the-bookstores/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/08/04/late-summer-bestsellers-wont-be-enough-to-save-the-bookstores/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/08/04/late-summer-bestsellers-wont-be-enough-to-save-the-bookstores/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) of upcoming releases this summer such as Andrew Davidson's The Gargoyle, New York Times reporter David Carr's memoir The Night of the Gun, and Ron Suskind's The Way of the World: A Story of Truth and Hope in an Age of Extremism.

There's a separate article on the release of Stephenie Meyer's book Breaking Dawn, which The Journal calls a "vampire romance novel." Borders Group (NYSE: BGP) said it has sold 250,000 copies in the first 24 hours following the book's release.

That's an impressive number, and it may be some cause for hope for shareholders who have taken a beating in booksellers like Borders, Barnes and Noble (NYSE: BKS) and Books-a-Million (NASDAQ: BAMM).

But don't get too excited. Since the first American edition of the first Harry Potter book in October of 1998, shares of Scholastic (NASDAQ: SCHL), a specialty publisher of children's books, have gone from around $20 per share to their current price of $26 -- a gain of 30% over the course of a decade. Not exactly something to get excited about, especially considering it's one of the bestselling books of all time, ever.

The bookstores might get a temporary jolt from late sumer and fall hits, but the long-term fundamentals of the industry will drive results. A new CD from Eminem -- or even The Beatles for that matter -- wouldn't be enough to save a company like Trans World Entertainment (NASDAQ: TWMC). For bookstores, that means the lower prices and wider selection of Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN), or conveniences of stores like Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), as well as the onset of digital delivery are the factors investors have to look at.

And even vampire romance novels can't compete with those.

Late summer bestsellers won't be enough to save the bookstores originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 04 Aug 2008 11:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AmazonAMZNbammBarnes and NobleBarnesAndNobleBGPBKSBooksBordersinthenewsschltwmcwmtMon, 04 Aug 2008 11:15:00 EST<![CDATA[Borders attempts to stand out from the crowd by being exactly like it]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/07/29/borders-attempts-to-stand-out-from-the-crowd-by-being-exactly-li/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/07/29/borders-attempts-to-stand-out-from-the-crowd-by-being-exactly-li/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/07/29/borders-attempts-to-stand-out-from-the-crowd-by-being-exactly-li/#commentsFiled under: , ,

When it comes to companies lacking in any kind of strategic direction, it's hard to top Border Group (NYSE: BGP). In the midst of its efforts to sell itself, Borders recently launched its own e-commerce site to compete with better-financed, and just plain better, rivals like Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Barnes and Noble (NYSE: BKS).

Browsing NewYorkTimes.com this morning, I noticed a banner ad for "the new Borders.com: Free shipping on orders over $25."

Man, that should do a lot to lure customers away from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Oh, wait. No it won't, because both of those sites offer exactly the same deal. And, just to add insult to injury, so does Books-A-Million (NASDAQ: BAMM).

Basically, Borders has a weak balance sheet and, in the midst of its efforts to put its shareholders out of their misery with a sale, is blowing money on capital expenditures that will give the company the same service as competitors: meaning that most strategic buyers won't pay any extra for the e-commerce site.

The stock's low price has attracted brilliant investors like William Ackman, but given that the company is continuing to make value-destroying decisions, I don't think it's a stock investors should go near.


More Borders coverage:
Does Borders have any idea what it's doing?
Borders goes digital
Borders is for sale
Why would Barnes & Noble buy Borders?

Borders attempts to stand out from the crowd by being exactly like it originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 Jul 2008 11:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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