Bookseller Borders, which helped pioneer superstores that put countless mom-and-pop bookshops out of business, filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday, sunk by crushing debt and sluggishness in adapting to a rapidly changing industry.
The 40-year-old company plans to close about 200 of its 642 stores over the next few weeks. All of the stores closed will be superstores, Borders spokeswoman Mary Davis said.
Borders often had HUGE manga sections in their stores and was a key way to get manga into the mainstream. Now we are looking at 200 locations (along with their manga sections) close in the next few weeks. That means there are 200 less locations for fans to find thier anime/manga.
Borders Group Inc. President Mike Edwards said in a written statement that cautious consumer spending, negotiations with publishers and other vendors and a lack of liquidity made it clear Borders “does not have the capital resources it needs to be a viable competitor.” Borders plans to operate normally and honor gift cards and its loyalty program as it reorganizes. The company will receive $505 million in debtor-in-possession financing from GE Capital and others to help it reorganize.
According to the Chapter 11 filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York, Borders had $1.28 billion in assets and $1.29 billion in debts as of Dec. 25. It owes tens of millions of dollars to publishers, including $41.1 million to Penguin Putnam, $36.9 million to Hachette Book Group, $33.8 million to Simon & Schuster and $33.5 million to Random House.
No that is not a good thing.
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