Just as Engadget was hitting publish on its first posts, I was putting a freshly minted English degree to use working at an indie bookshop in Los Angeles. In seemingly unrelated news, Amazon had just reported its first profitable year after switching from selling books to selling “everything” four years before. (It still sold a lot of books.) Our bookstore did a good job keeping shelves stocked with a balance of the more worthy popular hits and smaller, better fare. But we couldn’t have every book a customer might want, so we offered to order any in-print title. If a distributor had it, it’d take about a week to get in, longer if we had to go through the publisher. That seemed fine for most customers. But sometimes “about a week” was too long. A few people came right out and said, “Nah, I’ll order it on Amazon.” In 2005, Amazon launched Prime, the membership program that, for $79 a year, gave customers unlimited two-day shipping on most orders. At launch, CEO Jeff Bezos called it “‘all-you-can-eat’ express shipping.” No one knew at the time how hungry the world was for Amazon’s brand of convenience. And now, nearly two decades later, we’ve seen the shifts that accommodate that buffet — in labor, retail and the entire customer experience. Prime wasn’t an overnight success. It’s estimated that six years after launch, just four million households paid for the service. But 10 years later, in 2021, Bezos claimed it had accrued 200 million members worldwide. Outside of that... Continue reading at 'Engadget'
[ Engadget | 2024-03-08 14:15:57 UTC ]
Hooray, a spot of good news! The Gotham Book Prize, given annually to recognize a new book about New York City, has just released its list of finalists. Formed in 2020 by Howard Wolfson of Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bradley Tusk, who owns the indie bookstore P&T Knitwear, the Gotham Prize... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-01-31 16:59:30 UTC ]
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Independent bookstores in more than 30 cities across six continents will participate in the first synchronized Global Bookstore Crawl on April 26, coinciding with Independent Bookstore Day in the U.S. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-01-30 05:00:00 UTC ]
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As of this morning, you can now easily buy ebooks from your local indie bookstore. Thanks to Bookshop.org, the reigning David to Am*zon’s Goliath. As Wired reports, a new platform on the site will now sell ebooks directly to customers. Bookshop users can buy and read titles via a handy-dandy... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-01-28 14:35:29 UTC ]
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Jennifer Rudolph Walsh and Victoria Jackson, the founders of Godmothers bookstore in California, discuss embracing the uncertainty of transitions, creating space for serendipity, and being open to surprises. Each time I walk into a bookstore I choose a book of poetry off the shelf and open it... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2025-01-08 10:30:00 UTC ]
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Read with Jenna and Barnes & Noble spotlight Emma Knight's debut novel, Oprah's Book Club celebrates the 20th anniversary of Eckhart Tolle's 'A New Earth,' and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-01-08 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Online bookstore Allstora, founded by RuPaul, has partnered with actress and trans activist Dylan Mulvaney and Gus Kenworthy, an Olympic medalist in freestyle skiing, to launch two new book clubs, which will distribute 2,500 banned books to LGBTQ+ organizations across the country. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-12-17 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Random House will distribute all titles published by Boom! Studios, which it acquired this August, starting next July, taking over distribution to the bookstore trade from Simon & Schuster and to the direct market from Diamond Comic Distributors. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-12-11 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The Last Bookstore defies the e-commerce trend and prepares to open a new bricks-and-mortar outpost in Studio City. 'The desire of Gen Z to have physical media is part of it,' the owner says. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2024-12-05 11:00:05 UTC ]
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The Swiss-themed town of Midway is now home to Folklore Bookshop. Co-owned by children’s author Lindsey Leavitt, Audrey Lind, and Alison Russell, Folklore welcomed customers on October 5 and held a grand opening October 26. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-12-04 05:00:00 UTC ]
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You can book a room in any hotel, but at the Library Hotel you can select which books will be in your room. On the fourth floor, far from the madding crowd downstairs enjoying the complimentary daily wine and cheese, guests can rest in a room filled with Russian novels. The sixth floor’s rooms... Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2024-12-02 18:27:16 UTC ]
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There are a lot of lackluster traditions for the day before Thanksgiving: hitting your local bar at night, prepping yourself to face your cousin with the bad politics, going toe-to-toe with fellow procrastinators over that last bag of cranberries. I’d like to pitch a new tradition for your... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2024-11-27 18:17:12 UTC ]
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For deckled edges. For a good beginning and a better ending. For a bustling bookstore in full holiday swing. A reader gives thanks. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-11-27 16:00:00 UTC ]
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The nonprofit LGBTQ+ bookstore and community center Mosaics, located in Provo, Utah, needs support to keep its doors open after being a regular target of hate. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-11-26 13:00:00 UTC ]
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This bookstore has faced multiple bomb threats for hosting Drag Story Hours, and now it might shut down—but we can help it survive. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2024-11-26 12:15:00 UTC ]
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After word spread that Costco was planning to sell books in only the final three months of each year beginning in 2025, various sources now say the mass merchandiser has committed to keeping bookstore sections year-round in 100 of its more than 600 locations. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-11-25 05:00:00 UTC ]
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From tales of alienation to comforting novels set in bookshops, Japanese authors have written nearly half of this year’s bestselling translated novels in the UK. What’s their secret?• Read an an exclusive Q&A with Haruki MurakamiAnyone who has been in a bookshop in the last few years will... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2024-11-23 09:00:37 UTC ]
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This time of year has a lot of merry and bright things to be excited about, but it can be stressful if you’re stumped on what to get your mom, dad, best friend, coworker or kids’ teacher as a holiday gift. Whether you enjoy or dread buying gifts for people, it’s safe to say we all want to give... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2024-11-15 15:12:30 UTC ]
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There are few things better in life than getting lost in a good book — as any book lover will tell you. We have a few heavy readers on staff at Engadget and we all have opinions on the gadgets and subscriptions we think make the experience of reading even better. There are gift ideas here for... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2024-11-15 13:01:25 UTC ]
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