Could Fort Worth see another Barnes & Noble bookstore? The New York-based bookstore chain plans four new stores in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to add to the11 it already operates.
Barnes & Noble did have several other locations in North Texas but closed several, including the shops downtown and on University Drive in Fort Worth over a decade ago as online retailers began cutting into brick-and-mortar retailers.
But this year the chain is planning to add 30 to 40 new stores with four in this area, said Janine Flanigan, senior director of stores and planning. That’s a big jump from the paltry 16 the company had opened in the previous decade, she said.
“This is big for us,” she said. “We’re really excited.”
The new stores won’t be as large as some of the previous stores, averaging between 5,000 to 30,000 square feet, Flanigan said. Before some recent changes, the size of a store usually ranged from 25,000 to 30,000 square feet.
These new designs and footprints mean Barnes & Noble can fit in more locations than in previous years.
The first new Barnes & Noble is set to open in late October in Richardson at 1361 W. Campbell Road in the Pavillion East Shopping Center. It will be about 13,000 square feet and have new designs and features with additional display space, Flanigan said.
The retailer, which was acquired by Elliott Advisors from the U.K. in 2019, has bookmarked three other sites, but has not finalized the other locations.
“We would love to open one in Fort Worth,” Flanigan said.
One other difference between the new stores and previous Barnes & Noble locations is that much of the content on display will be driven by local decisions and what is selling locally.
“Before, a lot of those decisions were made elsewhere,” she said.
The Barnes & Noble expansion comes just as independent booksellers seem to be thriving in the wake of the pandemic. According to a recent New York Times article, about 300 independent bookstores have opened in the U.S. in the past two years. TheAmerican Booksellers Associationis also seeing an increase in membership, now at 2023, up from just over 1,600 in July 2020.
The Fort Worth area has seen several new independent bookstores open recently. Pantego Booksopened in October 2022 and Talking Animal Booksopened in Grapevine earlier this year.
Amazon, which wreaked havoc on brick-and-mortar bookstores with online sales, opened a string of retail shops, including bookstores, in 2015. However, in 2022, it closedall its retail locations, including a bookstore in Frisco.
And the bookstore that isn’t quite a bookstore
There’s another bookstore in Fort Worth that will reopen soon. Only, it’s more speakeasy than a bookstore.
It’sThompson’s Bookstore Speakeasy and Cigar Lounge at 900 Houston St. Housed in the 1910-era Vybeck Building, it was the location of Thompson’s Bookstore from 1972 to 1993. In 2015, the location opened as Thompson’s Bookstore Cocktail Lounge and Speakeasy. It is currently undergoing renovations and is expected to unveil the extensive changes at the end of the month, according to the Facebook page of the business.
Thompson’s Bookstore is owned byAngMar Companies of Mansfield, which also owns Fat Daddy’s Live, House of Hot Rod and Mama Angie’s Mexican Cocina.
Down the street from Thompson’s, a new restaurant opens
Just down the street from Thompson’s Bookstore, contemporary Asian fusion/sushi restaurant, Musume, has made its Fort Worth debut inside the Sandman Signature Hotel, 810 Houston St.
Musume’s menu includes sushi and sashimi made with fresh fish flown in daily from Japan, authentic Asian cuisine offered in both small and large plates, vegetarian and vegan dishes, salads, tempura, tableside ramen noodles, and six-or-eight course Omakase (which means dishes curated by the chef). A news release says Musume has Fort Worth’s largest selection of premium sake with more than 50 labels, as well as the city’s largest collection of Japanese whisky with more than 60 offerings.
Musume, which means “daughter” in Japanese, is part of the Rock Libations restaurant group owned by Dallas’ Josh Babb and Sean Clavir. Serving as Musume’s executive chef is Yuzo Toyama, who is a native of Shizuoka, Japan, and has 20+ years’ experience in traditional Japanese culinary arts, most recently serving as executive chef at Yuzo Sushi Tapas in Oklahoma City.
Do you have something for the Bob on Business column? Email Bob Francis as bob.francis@fortworthreport.org
Bob Francis is business editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org.