I go to Borders bookstore at least 3 times a month. On my last few trips, I’ve looked for three specific magazines: Asimov’s SF, Fantasy & SF, and a specific watercolor magazine. I struck out on all three counts.
Last night, I discovered they had moved the watercolor magazine out of the magazine section, and banished it to the back of the store with the art instruction books. It’s suspended in front of the shelf with a little hanging wire rack. WTF?
I spoke to the three employees loitering at the info desk. They called it a “interceptor” display, and that half the stock is with the magazines, the other half is with the books. I informed them that no, it wasn’t, and I had been looking for it for weeks. They didn’t seem concerned.
I also asked where I could find Asimovs and F&SF. They said they would be with the periodicals. I said, no, they’re not, and they aren’t with the SF books, either. Their answer? “Oh, well we must not have any.”
Did they try to HELP me find it? Did they offer to LOOK for it? Did they even CONSULT the digital orb (i.e. computer) that lay directly under their fingertips? Nope. Nada. No info. NO Asimovs. No F&SF. NO SERVICE.
I am annoyed and dismayed by this.
jeanerj
August 28, 2007 at 5:19pmNo science, no fiction, no art. Well, Allison, in that case I cannot imagine that life would be worth living. No, really. At least we can create our own art, but no SF? We might as well start watching soap operae all day and Haagen Daz our way into an infarction. Unless, of course, you can find a way to subscribe to these magazines, if they even offer such a service.
Sadly, B&N or Borders have the market monopoly on books, which is why I love used book stores, Amazon and magazine stands.
Good luck in finding what you want. And in spreading the word to the retail sector that you are the customer in need of service, and you are the one with the greenbacks to match.
allisonstein
August 28, 2007 at 6:34pmYes, I should subscribe. But I find that when I do, I don’t actually read them. I do occaisionally pick one up when it looks particularly interesting, or when I have a big block o’ time planned for casual reading.
mckitterick
August 28, 2007 at 6:20pmCraptastic.
Sure, we can all subscribe to the magazines, but what about people first discovering them on the newsstand? Good luck.
allisonstein
August 28, 2007 at 6:33pmExactly!
skyflame
August 28, 2007 at 7:02pmI was at the Borders at 119th and Metcalf yesterday over lunch and they were having some server issues, it looked like. Maybe it was the same thing at your Borders and nobody had bothered to check if the connection was back up.
robinbailey
August 29, 2007 at 1:52am“We don’t care; we don’t have to. We’re Borders.”
Repeat that out loud as you wander through the aisles of their stores. It will irritate the hell out of their clerks, but it will make you feel calmer and more at peace, the way all good mantras do.
Anonymous
August 30, 2007 at 7:24pmIf your Borders is like mine the employees range in age from 16-25 and really only care about their next paycheck not what they are supposed to be doing to earn it. amazon.com is usually where I go for books.