
Barnes & Noble (B&N) will apparently introduce its new “prototype” store in Delaware this July when it closes its Concord Mall location and moves less than a mile away to about half the space in Concord Square Shopping Center.
The new location is in space that once housed now-defunct bookseller Borders.
A B&N spokesman would only say that the Concord Mall store will close July 2 and reopen the next day in Concord Square. He declined comment on the format of the store until closer to the opening.
But in response to questions from the Delaware Business Times, Capano Management, which owns and leases Concord Square, said “the new Barnes & Noble site will be updated to follow the stylish redesign of the bookstore chain’s recent retail prototype locations.” With a more ergonomically sensitive layout, the “new look” is consumer-targeted to focus primarily on books and a curated assortment of non-book items. Featuring a more urban minimalist setting, the Concord Square store will showcase an open floor plan, modern lighting and furniture, and the ever-popular café.”
This description is consistent with B&N’s 10th prototype store, which opened March 27 in Rochester Hills, Michigan. That store was described by an industry publication as “about half to a third the size of B&N’s big-box bookstores, the 14,000-square-foot store will feature a more spacious design with lower bookshelves, more cover-out book displays, and plenty of non-book merchandise such as bottled water, vinyl records, notebooks, board games, and Lego sets.
Madison Rogers of Capano Management handled the lease negotiations.