The ink has barely dried on Borders Group Inc.’s bankruptcy filing this week and already another major bookstore chain is looking to fill its Massachusetts stores slated for closure.
Books-A-Million Inc., a Birmingham, Ala.-based retailer with a substantial online presence and more than 200 brick-and-mortar locations in the United States, is preparing proposals to potentially fill some or all of the Bay State’s storefronts slated for closure. A senior executive with the company said Books-A-Million is in the process of identifying local landlords affected by Borders’ downsizing and is likely to offer lease proposals shortly.
The executive in question declined to comment further, adding that Books-A-Million also is inquiring into potential leases at the 200-odd Borders scheduled to close as part of bankrupcty filing. Founded in 1917, Books-A-Million has more than 200 stores in 19 states and the District of Columbia. The company is publicly traded (Nasdaq: BAMM) and booked $341 million in sales and a net profit of $2.2 million in the nine months ended Oct. 30.
As detailed in a Round Up story yesterday, at least six Borders stores will be closed in Massachusetts. Those sites, stretching from Boston’s northern suburbs to Cape Cod, comprise about 151,000 square feet of leasable space.
Read more: Books-A-Million kicking tires at Borders sites | Boston Business Journal