posted 11-11-1999 09:55 AM         

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Looks like B&N.com is finally starting to take advantage of the relationship with their offline parent company. They are using the .com database to target customers by sending coupons to those with zip codes near newly opening Barnes & Noble stores or stores holding events such as book signings. "Far from cannibalizing Barnes & Noble stores, barnesandnoble.com 'market[s] customers back and forth' and 'serve[s] customers however they want to shop,' the B&N.com CEO says. The idea is to get customers to shop online and in the stores."

This is definitely a step in the right direction. Other things I am impressed by: 1. Though 45 out of the most recent 62 Internet IPOs were trading below their offering prices, B&N.com is one of the lucky 17.
2. So far it's the most successful website launched by a traditional, brick-and-mortar retailer.
3. It's the only one to make the list of top 30 websites.

By the way, any status report on the amazon '1-click' lawsuit?

posted 10-19-1999 09:42 AM         

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To add to gatsby, et. al's strategy of BN.com and BN working together to utilize an offline/online presence - This is exactly what Drugstore.com and Rite Aid are trying to do, so it is a good little test group to see if it will work. As part of the Rite Aid agreement, customers can now order their drugs online at Drugstore.com and pick them up at any of Rite Aid's 3,800 stores, taking the two- to three-day shipping wait out of the picture for customers who need their prescriptions filled right away. In addition, Rite Aid agreed as part of the deal to promote Drugstore.com on shopping bags, receipts, and pharmacy packaging.

To me, this sounds like exactly what everyone here wants the two B&N's to do, and I think it will work.

posted 10-14-1999 03:30 PM         

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I keep hearing about how Barnes and Noble should leverage their brick and mortar stores. I've seen people post about it here, read it in articles. I read another account today.
It is from a Smart Money article

"But the biggest weapon that Barnesandnoble has that Amazon doesn't is one that it can't use to its fullest potential. Its mother corporation's 1,000 brick-and-mortar stores set it apart from Amazon and almost all other Net plays and could give it a big leg up -- if it could really use them. "
I hope the guys at BN.com are getting to it over there. It may be too late if they don't start making a move soon.

posted 10-11-1999 05:30 PM         

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Here's the problem I see with ebooks.

“The technology suffers from a classic chicken-and-egg dilemma. Most publishers remain reluctant to adopt the new format in addition to existing hardcover, paperback and audio book formats until a larger market exists.“
There are only 1400 titles available at this time (plus 1000 free titles, but if they are free how good could they be?), compared to the millions of titles available in print. It will take a LONG time for this technology to catch on unless there are other ways to read it than an expensive ebook.

posted 10-07-1999 12:17 PM         

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Barnes and Noble.com's parent company jumped into the video game and entertainment software business by buying privately held Babbage's for $215 million in cash and assumed liabilities yesterday. This move will obviously remind everyone of Amazon's evolution. The deal is expected to be accretive to Barnes & Noble's earnings by $0.10 per diluted share for the fourth quarter. Alan Kahn, Barnes & Noble's chief operating officer, said that barnesandnoble.com will be able to leverage the acquisition. If Babbage's meets certain financial goals over the next two years, Barnes & Noble will pay an additional $10 million in 2001 and again in 2002.

So I guess indirectly (or eventually), b&n.com will benefit from this move, but who knows how long it will take. Maybe it shows that the offline company is starting to look more into how they can integrate themselves more with their online spinoff, a move everyone on this board seems to want.

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