Posted on BN’s Facebook from a customer:
“While at your Redlands location I was trying to find Anne McCaffrey books I asked the lady if they were out of print or if they have them all she kept coming up with How to train to your dragon I told her No that wasn't the one I was looking for The Dragonriders Of Pern I even told her to look under Todd McCrafferty or Gigi nope nothing I was extremely disappointed in her lack of knowledge of sci -fi authors if you are going to hire people in customer service make sure they know their books and authors”
THAT is who’s working at BN now !
Fired ALL the knowledgeable career employees and hired part timers who have no vested interest in the company ( or book knowledge, it seems)
7 replies (most recent on top)
Interestingly, I saw this around 2008 or so, not long after the Great Recession started; the company had taken to hiring a bunch of retail managers who had lost their jobs with other companies, and (I suppose) Len thought they were, somehow, high-value hires. One of them came into my store as an upwardly mobile ASM. We were at the CS desk one day and a lady came up, looking for a copy of 1984. The other guy started typing into Bookmaster, while I said that it was by George Orwell, and it was right over here, and handed a copy to the customer. The other guy was amazed, and said, "wow, you knew that?"
I think his previous job was running a shoe store.
PATHETIC!
Barnes & Noble threw away their greatest assets. Their long time employees. Those who dedicated their career to the company. They replaced these true booksellers with part timers, off the street. Bodies to fill in. Since then , the stores changed. The “premiere” book store. The knowledgeable, bookstore. Became, just a store. A less knowledgeable, less customer driven, less desirable. Nothing. Not new owners, new management, new policies, can undo the injustice to both the employees and the customers.
Too many regular customers have stopped coming to our store.
Sales are horrible.
This new owner isn’t going to turn this around.
B& N Let their Customers ( and employees) down. I hope they change the stores name.
I go back to school this month. But I feel sorry for those working there..
“At the rate business is now here, they won't be making more money”
They would do you good to change their name. The name Barnes & Noble is toxic now .
At the rate business is now here, they won't be making more money.
Instead of being bought, Wish it had just closed and put out of its misery.
Instead, the incompetent money grubbers, made more money !
The ones they didn't fire, they drove out. It used to be a great book store and then it became all about cheap tablets, over-priced c-appy gifts, toys and rip-off membership cards so they could get email addresses to sell.
Good riddance to bad CEOs and the worst store management ever!