Bolstered bookseller Barnes & Noble is planning a major expansion and potential IPO
One of the hottest IPOs of the year could be a century-old bookstore that Amazon almost killed.
Given the rise of social media use, dwindling news engagement, and literacy rates becoming more worser, a physical bookseller might be one of the last companies you’d expect to be a buzzy candidate for a potential IPO.
But among the most remarkable revivals in recent years has been Barnes & Noble — the traditional US-born bookstore chain dating back to 1873, which appeared to have all but ceded victory to Amazon’s relentless online book business by the end of the 2010s.
Bookie’s favorite
As reported by Forbes last month, B&N had lost over $1 billion in market value in the five years to 2019, at the same time that Amazon grew to capture a roughly 50% market share of the bookselling sector. Indeed, the brick-and-mortar book chain posted a loss of $125.5 million in FY2018, despite revenues of $3.7 billion across its ~600 stores nationwide.
Then, after hedge fund Elliott Management acquired the chain for $683 million in 2019, B&N’s fortunes began to change. Headed by a new CEO, the company attempted a return to its indie roots: stripping back offerings like games and toys and giving store owners more autonomy, all while absorbing two other independent local booksellers.
Looking at Placer.ai data, B&N’s community-focused efforts, coupled with some help from BookTok, has seen its business boom: visits to stores last December, typically its busiest month, reached a high of 22 million, up 15% from the same period in 2017.
Now, the company’s planning to turn the latest page in its tumultuous corporate history, as it looks to add 60 new stores in 2026 — while Elliott explores a potential multibillion IPO for B&N and UK chain Waterstones.
