Borders, which grew from an independent bookstore in Ann Arbor, Mich., to the nation’s second-largest bookstore chain, filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday and plans to close 200 of its 488 superstores within the next few weeks.
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The filing was expected. The company, crushed by debt and falling sales, revealed in December that it had delayed payments to publishers.
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It will lay off about 6,000 of its 19,500 employees.
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Trading in Borders’ stock was suspended. It closed Tuesday at 22.8 cents, down from a high of $41.75 in 1998. Shares of Barnes Noble, the largest bookstore chain, which is in better financial shape, closed at $18.77, up 8 cents.
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In a statement, Borders President Mike Edwards said that with a proper infusion of capital and time to reorganize Borders can be a successful business for the long term, operating the stores that remain open in a normal course.
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But Borders’ inability to reach a deal with creditors to avert a bankruptcy filing could indicate that there are concerns about the chain’s long-term survival. It remains unclear if publishers, who are owed more than $230 million, will ship new titles to the chain. Most declined to comment Wednesday.
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With 200 fewer stores, Some of those consumers are going to be lost forever, says Michael Norris, an analyst with Simba Information, a market research firm.
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He expects independent bookstores will now say, Shop with us — we outlasted the superstore trend, while Barnes Noble and online retailer Amazon will reach out to readers.
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But fewer bookstores means fewer people thinking about books and thinking about reading, he says. There’s an impact on authors as well, because there are fewer channels willing to carry a book by an unknown author.
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The growth of Amazon and other discounters, such as Wal-Mart and Costco, and a surge in e-book sales have challenged bookstores,…