Barnes & Noble
to open store
in Ala Moana

Barnes & Noble Inc. said yesterday it will open a 26,000-square-foot book store, complete with cafe and wireless Internet services, in part of the old J.C. Penney space at Ala Moana Center.

The store, scheduled to open in November, will be at street level on the mauka side of the center, between Hino's Hairstyle and the satellite city hall. Barnes & Noble also has a store at Kahala Mall.

The new store will be Ala Moana's first full-sized book store, said Sharon James, regional vice president of marketing for General Growth Properties, owner of Ala Moana Center.

"We've been looking at that use for this space for as long as it's been vacant," James said. "We believe Barnes & Noble will add to the rest of the merchandise mix at our center. They've got a great concept and a strong retail draw."

Other nearby book retailers, including Borders Books & Music and Bestsellers Books & Music, say they don't fear the addition of another big book seller.

"The more book stores, the more readers," said Les Honda, district marketing manager for Borders Books & Music in Hawaii and Las Vegas. "We've been here in the islands for 13 years and the growth for us has been great."

Borders has six stores in Hawaii, including a 30,000-square-foot site at nearby Ward Centre. It also operates 10 Borders Express stores, including one at Ala Moana. The company has announced plans to open a store at Pearlridge Mall before the year ends.

Bestsellers Books & Music, Hawaii's largest independent bookseller, should be able to hold its own, even with the addition of another store by a national chain, said Brian Melzack, who co-owns the Hawaii-based company.

"We aren't worried; we've been able to create a niche with our tourist and specialty markets," Melzack said. "We don't really consider them competition because they aren't really in our market."

Bestsellers operates two airport stores, one in Waikiki, one downtown and one in East Honolulu.

"This fall, another 50,000 square feet of new book stores is coming to town," Melzack. "On the one hand, it makes you say 'whoa,' but it's also wonderful because it shows that the market is healthy Hawaii residents and tourists are buying books."