Plus at every B&N that I've been to, about a third to a half of the space isn't aimed at books/magazines/newspapers (even including their Nook stuff as part of that). The local one has about 4 isles worth of LEGO, and around 2 of just Harry Potter merchandise (with more scattered around), a full toy section, model kits, board games, and a ton of other things that are not stuff you normally expect in a bookstore.
IIRC, Powell's is the world's largest *independent* bookstore. The soulless corporations can have their square footage; Powell's is an actual destination. (I also can't go there often, despite living about an hour from it, or I would be capital-b Broke. Happy, yes. But also happy in a van down by the river full of books. :D) (eta: those 'curated tables' are curated by corporate. So while there are a lot of them with this larger footprint, they're the same exact curations you'll find at any B&N in the country. :/ )
Biggest in terms of floor space (just spread the books out!), or biggest in inventory (number of titles) are very important distinctions. I'd take Powell's any day (and I've been there often).
The best book store I went to was just a couple weeks ago, the selection wasn't too great, but they had a shoulder cat that scarfed across my shoulders while I browsed, so that was pretty cool.
That is a Barnes & Noble Café (not owned or operated by Starbucks) that sells some Starbucks products. It’s an important distinction because they do not accept Starbucks gift cards only B&N gift cards. Also, they carry some items Starbucks doesn’t and vice versa. This applies to every B&N location with a café.
It looks absolutely amazing! I adore book shops...we have one of the world's most beautiful book stores here in Portugal (in Oporto) which is very pretty. Apparently JK Rowling was inspired there! It's called Livraria Lello if you want to look it up! x
My favourite online book store was Book Depository since it had thousands of books that you couldn't get in my country through our regular stores, I'm pretty sure our libraries even used them. Like for example; when it first closed it took you to Amazon, but when I looked up the books I wanted, they didn't even ship to New Zealand or if they did the shipping cost was too much. Also this was a interesting video!
I used to deliver to B&N here in Michigan. Sometimes they had returns and after the year turned over they had huge returns. I wonder, to keep that much shelf space filled how their return amount compares. And I mainly mean sending stuff back that sits there for too long.
Luckily the new CEO is slowly revamping and relocating many of the stores to mimic the vibe small cozy indie bookstores. They’re going to get back to mainly selling books and getting away from all of the other merchandise. There will still be some, but much less than what’s currently in stores. Also, the managers at individual stores will now be stocking books based on what’s trending and relevant to their particular area. No more of corporate making those types of decisions. There’s articles and videos on it if you search for them. I think it’s a step in the right direction for them😊
I dont see the problem...B&N having all these things makes it a one-stop shop. My wife can get her coffee, toys for my son while I browse books, comics, and board games. The store is still predominantly focused on books...
@skylark1250 The inclusion of these other things doesn't mean there's less books to be sold. You can have your books and other people can have these other things there.
Is beautiful, yes, very New York, at least for us, Europeans. I love the long dark shelves, with so many books, it compensates for so much unused empty space Thank you for this tour!♥♥♥
The clincher here is that you can have a thousand square foot bookstore but is you have only one foot of bookshelves you won's have many books at all. Powell in Portland is the bookstore with the most books in the world because it has the most shelf spaces full of books. Sort of like thinking that Mount Everest is the tallest mountain on land when really it is only two miles from its base to its peak. Everest sits on a plateau that's 17,000 feet above sea level, as does a good portion of the rest of the Himalayas. The base camp of Everest is at the bottom of Mount Everest and is 17,000 feet. The peak of Mount Everest is 29,000 feet above sea level, but if you took Everest and placed it beside Mount McKinley it would be a mile shorter from its base to its peak - it is not five miles tall but two miles and sits on the Himalayan Plateau. Think of it like this. If you're six feet tall you will always be six feet tall from your feet to your head. But if you stand on a three foot stool your head will be nine feet above the floor even though you will still be only six feet tall.
Lots of floor space for those escalator feet. Music section have shoe gaze? (You’d think this was Dallas). Should have drinks on every floor because if browsers don’t buy books then maybe they’ll buy drinks
8:57 I just read Hyperion by Dan Simmons a few months ago. I enjoyed the first part about Father Paul Dure and the Bikura. The other characters in the book have ok stories. But sadly I found the 1st to be the best. I think if I read the book again... I would maybe find it more interesting. I do realize why people rate it so high because of the story. But I still prefer the very first part.
You can get lost in there! Just for fun, check pictures of the bookstore "El Ateneo" (Buenos Aires, Argentina). It's one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world. Gosh, I miss that place!
This was great!! 🙌 I never went there when I live in New York but then again I didn’t go to a lot of places. Thanks for creating this video. All #thumbsup 👍 from me.
The idea of "the best" and Barnes & Noble don't belong in the same sentence (imho). It's a generic chain store, no matter how big it is. Come to the UK where we have bookshops dating back over 250 years, whose walls house the rare, the wonderful, the new and the old. Some of those book shops are huge. And then we have an actual whole town whose lifeblood is books.....Hay-on-Wye. Imagine walking down a street lined with bookshops! I'm sure there are many such wonderful real bookshops in the US as well (though maybe not so old). For the book connoisseurs, B&N cannot compete with any of them.
The Barnes & Noble closest to me in PA was pretty large and originally had a large music/DVD section but they moved to a temporary space to remodel. Half of their space went to a Cheesecake Factory (which I've been wanting one for years since the closest was a bit over an hour drive). The new one should be opening in a few weeks. My cousin is an employees and I'm pretty sure they are still going to have some music but it will be a much smaller section. The old one was right at the mall entrance which was right by another door to the outside so people would steal from there all the time
Positively 'meh'. Looks like every single other Barnes and Noble. Not even the old architecrure can put it in the top spot. Powell's is superior in terms of charm and feeling like a genuine book store and not a big box capitalist wet dream.
Barnes & Noble used to have a bigger Movies & Music section in their stores 15-20 years ago, but now people probably just buy those things online or use streaming services.
Read Hyperion what I feel was many years ago. Unless its a different Hyperion. If it was scifi then I guess the same. Was good although I feel there were more in the series that I never got to. Anyway gg.
Barnes and noble is too commercial for me also over priced. The book shop in oregan is soooo divine and the hunting for great books is like digging for buried treasure! It has books barnes and noble do not stock its just a treasure trove for finding awesome endearing books with great literary value! I get what you mean by the romance section in barnes and noble but to me its like brightly colored bubblegum. Once youve read 10 difference kinds of romance you can stop there because nobody writes anything original except Diana Gabaldon with the outlander series.
people in NYC willing t' overpay extra just t' hang out 'n browse? I used t' spend so much time browsy at the local used place but now that's just not part the day or week anymore.
oh!! I've always wanted to go there 🥹 it's so weird when I look it up it says it's the largest in china...odd
6 місяців тому
@@justlanchen Just like figuring out what is the world's biggest city, I guess there's always definitional problems... Do you include everything inside a single building that is a bookstore (ie. including a big cafe or performance space)... There's also some huge "book cities" in China which are really huge, but often consist of hundreds of smaller book stores (but also stationary stores, and maybe some tutoring spaces and cafes), which I guess wouldn't qualify...
"Shelf space" isn't a "little thing" for a book store. It's literally where they put the books.
Exactly!!! Way more important than just floor space. Watching this video the Barnes and noble had a lot of unused floor space.
Plus at every B&N that I've been to, about a third to a half of the space isn't aimed at books/magazines/newspapers (even including their Nook stuff as part of that).
The local one has about 4 isles worth of LEGO, and around 2 of just Harry Potter merchandise (with more scattered around), a full toy section, model kits, board games, and a ton of other things that are not stuff you normally expect in a bookstore.
IIRC, Powell's is the world's largest *independent* bookstore. The soulless corporations can have their square footage; Powell's is an actual destination.
(I also can't go there often, despite living about an hour from it, or I would be capital-b Broke. Happy, yes. But also happy in a van down by the river full of books. :D)
(eta: those 'curated tables' are curated by corporate. So while there are a lot of them with this larger footprint, they're the same exact curations you'll find at any B&N in the country. :/ )
Biggest in terms of floor space (just spread the books out!), or biggest in inventory (number of titles) are very important distinctions. I'd take Powell's any day (and I've been there often).
I've been to Powell's Bookstore in Portland. It's like being in heaven.
Give me a cramped over stuffed used bookstore anyday.
The best book store I went to was just a couple weeks ago, the selection wasn't too great, but they had a shoulder cat that scarfed across my shoulders while I browsed, so that was pretty cool.
Cats in bookstores just make my day!
I go every Saturday, then Petco, and finally Forbidden Planet. Might even catch a movie. All in the same neighborhood 😊.
That is a Barnes & Noble Café (not owned or operated by Starbucks) that sells some Starbucks products. It’s an important distinction because they do not accept Starbucks gift cards only B&N gift cards. Also, they carry some items Starbucks doesn’t and vice versa. This applies to every B&N location with a café.
very good to know!!
I love Powells in Portland Oregon.
Travel writing is easily one of my favourite genres of books, so I'm glad to hear you've discovered it 😆❤
It looks absolutely amazing! I adore book shops...we have one of the world's most beautiful book stores here in Portugal (in Oporto) which is very pretty. Apparently JK Rowling was inspired there! It's called Livraria Lello if you want to look it up! x
I absolutely loved reading The Will of the Many! It's the first in a series, so I can't wait for the next book to come out.
ooo good to know!! I can't wait to read!
My favourite online book store was Book Depository since it had thousands of books that you couldn't get in my country through our regular stores, I'm pretty sure our libraries even used them. Like for example; when it first closed it took you to Amazon, but when I looked up the books I wanted, they didn't even ship to New Zealand or if they did the shipping cost was too much. Also this was a interesting video!
I used to deliver to B&N here in Michigan. Sometimes they had returns and after the year turned over they had huge returns. I wonder, to keep that much shelf space filled how their return amount compares. And I mainly mean sending stuff back that sits there for too long.
Hyperion is wonderful! Must read Fall of Hyperion as well.
I didn't know Barnes and Noble still sold books between the games, Legos, plush toys and the coffee shop☹
Ive never been cuz im in europe but i feel this so deeply
Luckily the new CEO is slowly revamping and relocating many of the stores to mimic the vibe small cozy indie bookstores. They’re going to get back to mainly selling books and getting away from all of the other merchandise. There will still be some, but much less than what’s currently in stores. Also, the managers at individual stores will now be stocking books based on what’s trending and relevant to their particular area. No more of corporate making those types of decisions. There’s articles and videos on it if you search for them. I think it’s a step in the right direction for them😊
I dont see the problem...B&N having all these things makes it a one-stop shop. My wife can get her coffee, toys for my son while I browse books, comics, and board games.
The store is still predominantly focused on books...
It used to be all books. I think it should return to all books. Pretty soon they will be selling tires in there😮
@skylark1250 The inclusion of these other things doesn't mean there's less books to be sold. You can have your books and other people can have these other things there.
Is beautiful, yes, very New York, at least for us, Europeans. I love the long dark shelves, with so many books, it compensates for so much unused empty space Thank you for this tour!♥♥♥
Boswell's Book Company in Milwaukee was the best bookstore I ever went to. Found it just walking down the street, great place if you are ever there.
The clincher here is that you can have a thousand square foot bookstore but is you have only one foot of bookshelves you won's have many books at all. Powell in Portland is the bookstore with the most books in the world because it has the most shelf spaces full of books. Sort of like thinking that Mount Everest is the tallest mountain on land when really it is only two miles from its base to its peak. Everest sits on a plateau that's 17,000 feet above sea level, as does a good portion of the rest of the Himalayas. The base camp of Everest is at the bottom of Mount Everest and is 17,000 feet. The peak of Mount Everest is 29,000 feet above sea level, but if you took Everest and placed it beside Mount McKinley it would be a mile shorter from its base to its peak - it is not five miles tall but two miles and sits on the Himalayan Plateau. Think of it like this. If you're six feet tall you will always be six feet tall from your feet to your head. But if you stand on a three foot stool your head will be nine feet above the floor even though you will still be only six feet tall.
Lots of floor space for those escalator feet. Music section have shoe gaze? (You’d think this was Dallas). Should have drinks on every floor because if browsers don’t buy books then maybe they’ll buy drinks
Yes some Barnes & Nobles have music sections. In Hawaii, ours does. 🤙🌺
8:57 I just read Hyperion by Dan Simmons a few months ago. I enjoyed the first part about Father Paul Dure and the Bikura. The other characters in the book have ok stories. But sadly I found the 1st to be the best. I think if I read the book again... I would maybe find it more interesting. I do realize why people rate it so high because of the story. But I still prefer the very first part.
You can get lost in there! Just for fun, check pictures of the bookstore "El Ateneo" (Buenos Aires, Argentina). It's one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world. Gosh, I miss that place!
oOoO looking this up!
the ladderssssss
This was great!! 🙌 I never went there when I live in New York but then again I didn’t go to a lot of places. Thanks for creating this video. All #thumbsup 👍 from me.
Thank you!!! 🥹🥹🥹🥹
I've been to that one many times when I lived in NY. I get autographs from Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman there.
Imagine living in one of the flats that looks through the window right into B&N 😍
This makes me want to make a bookstore bucket list.
you must go!!!
The idea of "the best" and Barnes & Noble don't belong in the same sentence (imho). It's a generic chain store, no matter how big it is. Come to the UK where we have bookshops dating back over 250 years, whose walls house the rare, the wonderful, the new and the old. Some of those book shops are huge. And then we have an actual whole town whose lifeblood is books.....Hay-on-Wye. Imagine walking down a street lined with bookshops! I'm sure there are many such wonderful real bookshops in the US as well (though maybe not so old). For the book connoisseurs, B&N cannot compete with any of them.
I was so surprised to see that a "world's biggest" store in NYC wasn't crowded at all. I really expected to see more shoppers drifting through.
The Barnes & Noble closest to me in PA was pretty large and originally had a large music/DVD section but they moved to a temporary space to remodel. Half of their space went to a Cheesecake Factory (which I've been wanting one for years since the closest was a bit over an hour drive). The new one should be opening in a few weeks. My cousin is an employees and I'm pretty sure they are still going to have some music but it will be a much smaller section. The old one was right at the mall entrance which was right by another door to the outside so people would steal from there all the time
I think the movies and music was more common in the 90s before streaming got popular
What books did you buy? I would be interested to know what you read, e.g., the library behind you in your videos?
Positively 'meh'. Looks like every single other Barnes and Noble. Not even the old architecrure can put it in the top spot. Powell's is superior in terms of charm and feeling like a genuine book store and not a big box capitalist wet dream.
I would really like to check that one out next!!
Barnes & Noble used to have a bigger Movies & Music section in their stores 15-20 years ago, but now people probably just buy those things online or use streaming services.
You have a really nice voice. A pleasure listening to you.
Did they have a book on bonsai? 😋
Thoroughly enjoyed😍😍😍
Glad you enjoyed
I thought Waterstones in the UK were big. Especially the Glasgow one.
I am so jealous 😭maybe one day I can go myself 💞 it's so beautiful. Books are so beautiful 💖
I love me some books 🥹
Love this video! 🗽
Glad you enjoyed it!
Hi from Australia... I was there just last week! 🙂
oh no way!!
I go to this particular location all the time
Read Hyperion what I feel was many years ago. Unless its a different Hyperion. If it was scifi then I guess the same. Was good although I feel there were more in the series that I never got to. Anyway gg.
Whoa,,
that place is mahoosive. ✨
RIGHT!
Barnes and noble is too commercial for me also over priced. The book shop in oregan is soooo divine and the hunting for great books is like digging for buried treasure! It has books barnes and noble do not stock its just a treasure trove for finding awesome endearing books with great literary value! I get what you mean by the romance section in barnes and noble but to me its like brightly colored bubblegum. Once youve read 10 difference kinds of romance you can stop there because nobody writes anything original except Diana Gabaldon with the outlander series.
I could live there.
what r buks?
I tink I has gift card o' them somewhere but I can't find where it is.
but e'erytime I was go t' order sumpin', is found cheaper on AMZN instead already. sigh
people in NYC willing t' overpay extra just t' hang out 'n browse? I used t' spend so much time browsy at the local used place but now that's just not part the day or week anymore.
I find these days [or past twnty yrs or so?] often the movie BETTER than the book...... sigh again
corinthian?
HEY ITS OINGO BOINGO
Did you miss the classics? Or did I? 😉
It's not how big it is, but how you use it.😃...... I"ll see myself out.....
🤣
To me powels bookstore is book heaven! Barnes and noble are too commercial for me and over priced.
So far, so good. What are you gonna do next?
Bicolline!!
😍😍😍😍😍😍😍
Simping for Barnes and Noble is seriously pathetic. I thought people into bookstores were supposed to be smart.
The criminals must not steal books.
hehe i go to school there so i go all the time im so lucky
so lucky!!1
Seems like this is 14307 square meters. Wangfujing Xinhua Bookstore in Beijing is 17,525 square meters. :)
oh!! I've always wanted to go there 🥹 it's so weird when I look it up it says it's the largest in china...odd
@@justlanchen Just like figuring out what is the world's biggest city, I guess there's always definitional problems... Do you include everything inside a single building that is a bookstore (ie. including a big cafe or performance space)... There's also some huge "book cities" in China which are really huge, but often consist of hundreds of smaller book stores (but also stationary stores, and maybe some tutoring spaces and cafes), which I guess wouldn't qualify...
Lots of wasted floor space at this location.
Powells is my local bookstore, but this Barns and Noble could give it a run for it's money,
OooO interesting to know!!!
why is it so unappealing both on the outside and especially inside?
I think the architecture on the outside is gorgeous
@@justlanchen I think you're a fool.
Did Barnes and Noble pay you for this ad?
You are a baby doll
Hi from Australia... I was there just last week! 🙂