The company is known by its customers for large retail outlets, many of which contain a café serving Starbucks coffee and other consumables. Most stores sell books, magazines, newspapers, DVDs, graphic novels, gifts, games, toys, music, and Nook e-readers and tablets. They offer publishing and self publishing services.
The company’s milestones:
1886 – Barnes & Noble began in 1886 as a bookstore called Arthur Hinds & Company, located at 4 Cooper Institute in the Cooper Union Building in New York City.
1894 – Noble was made a partner, and the name of the shop was changed to Hinds & Noble.
1917 – Noble bought out Hinds and entered into a partnership with William Barnes, son of his old friend Charles Barnes; the name of the store was changed to Barnes & Noble soon after.
1930 – Noble sold his share of the company to William Barnes’ son, John Wilcox Barnes.
1931 – Barnes & Noble opened a new publishing division in 1931.
1940 – The store was one of the first businesses to feature Muzak and it underwent a major renovation the following year.
1941 – The demand for a retail textbook store grew, and Barnes & Noble opened its first retail store in New York City, enlarging it in 1941 to serve the students of the many colleges and schools there.
1969 – Barnes & Noble was bought by Amtel, a corporation that also made toys and tools.
1974 – Barnes & Noble became the first bookstore chain to advertise on television and a year later, the company became the first bookseller in the United States to discount books, by selling The New York Times best-selling titles at 40% off the publishers’ list price.
Between the 1970s and the 1980s – Barnes & Noble opened smaller discount stores, which were eventually phased out in favor of larger stores. They also began to publish their own books to be sold to mail-order customers.
1993 – Barnes & Noble signed an agreement to serve Starbucks coffee in each of its existing and future cafes.
In March 1997 – Barnes & Noble launched an online bookselling service through America Online (AOL).
1998 – Barnes & Noble also operated 528 mall-based bookstores, under the names B. Dalton Bookseller, Doubleday Book Shops, and Scribner’s Bookstores.
September 2004 – The company’s book, “Hippie,” reached The New York Times Best Seller list.
2004 – Barnes & Noble began offering Wi-Fi in the café area of selected stores, using SBC FreedomLink (now the AT&T Wi-Fi network).
2010 – Barnes & Noble launched electronic book store and overseeing the introduction of its electronic book reader, the Nook.
2011 – Barnes & Noble became the last remaining national bookstore chain in the United States.
2016 – Barnes & Noble announced plans to open four concept stores in 2017 that featured cafés twice the size of its usual food spots, as well as bars offering wine and beer. Restaurants would also include a waitstaff and a full menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
2021 – Barnes & Noble has announced the release of a new 10-inch Android-based tablet, which is named the Nook 10″ HD, in a partnership with Lenovo, with Lenovo manufacturing the device.
According to en.wikipedia.org; zippia.com. Source of photo: internet
