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Top 2 booksellers report losses
Barnes & Noble and Borders predict weak holiday sales.

By MAE ANDERSON Associated Press
Published: 11/25/2009 2:25 AM
Last Modified: 11/25/2009 8:34 AM

NEW YORK — Barnes & Noble Inc. and Borders Group Inc., the nation's two largest brick-and-mortar book sellers, both posted quarterly losses Thursday and forecast a difficult holiday season, saying competition from discount chains and online retailers is stiffening.

Barnes & Noble, the larger of the two, also cut its forecast for annual profit, and shares of both retailers fell.

Even with online presence, traditional bookstores have had a rough time facing off against online sellers like Amazon.com as they also compete with low-price brick-and-mortar stores including Wal-Mart Stores and Target and cope with consumers cutting discretionary purchases amid tough economic times.

But Barnes & Noble CEO Stephen Riggio said this fall's price war among Amazon.com, Walmart.com and Target Corp.'s online division — in which those retailers cut prices on preorders for some new titles to $9 and less — was "overblown."

"Best sellers represent less than 5 percent of our sales and among these very top best sellers less than 1 percent of our sales," Riggio said.

Still, "every percentage counts," said Michael Norris, a senior analyst with Simba Information.

"I wouldn't be that quick to dismiss the influence of the big discounters there," he said. "You can go to Walmart.com and get the Sarah Palin book for a few bucks less than you can at either of them."

Both companies forecast a weak holiday season.

"Consumers remain unsettled and reactive to economic news," said Borders CEO Ron Marshall. By MAE ANDERSON Associated Press

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