Thanks to Starbucks, B&N has become the new public library

That's what columnist Kathleen Parker writes. "If you want people to gather, whether in a retail shop, a grocery store, a devastated coast or a blighted urban area - even a public library where few go to read anymore - build a Starbucks, or something like it," she says. "Barnes & Noble, thanks in no small part to the seductive smell of coffee, has become the new public library." (Tallahassee Democrat)

Comments

[ROXIE]

Notice the word "Library" - but are they selling more? Or just hanging out more?

I'm surprised that they sell anything at all in a B&N cafe. Every one I've been to has had people with books and homework spread out at each table, firmly entrenched and usually without making so much as a token attempt to buy a beverage.

Taking credit for Bush's speeches isn't much of a selling point. I'd be concerned with what they're putting in the coffee.

[deusx]

We only pee in your cup crackpot.

[isadora]

A friend of mine is a librarian and he told me there is a movement in building new libraries: attaching coffee shops as a way to bring people back to libraries/offer amenities to encourage folks to hang out!

[Melina.1]

One thing though...when I'm at B&N or at the library, I'm not usually "communing", per se, with others; I'm there to usually comb the aisles looking for required reading for my daughter's english class and/or focus, read, and study. B&N is a retailer... they are *selling* their books along with snacks and Starbucks coffee beverages. I'd be hard pressed to see our public library/librarian allow cups of coffee or venti frapps amongst the books and periodicals simply due to the "spillage" risk.

[cornfrost]

For years I've been saying "I'm going to the library" when I mean "I'm going to the B&N." I think of B&N as a library irrespective of the presence of food, coffee or Starbucks within. If you need to look up something, there it is on the shelf. And there are tons of places to sit. Just like the library, only the hours are better.
At my local B&N, the Starbucks is on the top floor, with the magazines. It is just like a library with snacks. It is always packed.

[christhelibrarian]

Sure, B&N can pass for a library if you are an adult with a car and some extra cash, but if you are poor or a child, or you live in an area without a B&N or a Starbucks nearby (yes, there are places like that - parts of suburbia that are not affluent and are not near a college) the public library is still a very important place in the community. I am a librarian in a public library, and we are pretty darn busy. We may not have your fancy smellin' coffees (although we are starting to try out that idea), but we have books, lots of 'em, and Internet access, for free. We are a good deal, especially for the poor - but they don't write columns for newspapers, so their voices don't get heard, do they?

[jessamyn]

The "old" public library lets you stay as long as you want, use the restroom, bring your kids, use their computers, see a puppet show or have someone help you with whatever the heck it is you need help with. Plus, you don't need to buy anything, ever.

I'm all for people having lots of nice welcoming spaces to enjoy themselves, but let's get real: people weren't going to B&N in New Orleans to fill out their FEMA forms online or figure out where they were going to sleep, they went to the library. You're a customer at B&N, but as a community member, the library belongs to you.

[this space for rent]

The main branch of the Seattle Public Library has an espresso cart inside. If I recall correctly, the library justified it by saying that having coffee around the books wasn't worse than anything that people might be doing with the books in their own homes.

[college student]

i think the article was just commenting on the fact that because of cafe, people come to hang out more (like at a library) not just to buy a particular book they need and leave. of course libraries still have their place. in all honesty, i go to B&N to hangout and drink coffee and study. yes, i am one of "those people" i suppose. sometimes i buy a book if i really want it, or a magazine, but i get almost all of my books from the library because i read way more books than i can afford to buy.

even though i go to B&N to hang out and don't buy a lot of books there, i'm sure having a cafe has helped their book sales... all you need to do is get more people IN the store to sell more.

[nt]

I definitely use the cafe at B&N to study. I am a paying customer, you will get asked to leave the table if you don't have a cafe item purchased. As a student I would prefer to use the public library or the university library if they had better hours and allowed food and drinks. Until then, I will try and make use of the noisy coffee shop/book store. I really wish that B&N had more places to plug my laptop into to once I run out of the battery power.

[panzy]

I want to know which coffee shop has the power plug for my laptop

[BN Barista]

Sure, it's a great atmosphere for studying, and most people buy their drinks before they get started. The only thing that's hard to deal with is people that don't put their books away. The baristas aren't trained to put away the books, and especially around this time of year- we hardly get from behind the counter to try. If you're not going to buy the book, at least return it to the booksellers in customer service.

I wish everyone's mother taught them to leave a place the way they found it...

[adyg]

I suppose you can label me as one of those people as well. I like studying at borders because of the hours and if I want a drink or snack it's made for me. To show my patronage and gratefulness for their long hours, I actually buy most of my textbooks such as novels through borders since they will cost the same through school, and buy used textbooks through amazon quite often. I would say they get a nice chunk of money from me and other students.