NAPERVILLE — Less than 36 hours after Borders Inc. announced it will close all 399 stores remaining in the once-giant bookstore chain, the Borders store on Route 59 in Naperville was filled with customers. Some came to protest and some came to sniff out "going out of business" bargains.
Some simply came to say goodbye.
"I'm really upset," said Liz Merkley of Naperville as she browsed among the magazine racks. "This is a place I could come with my kids, that the whole family could enjoy. It's a gathering place for friends and family. Where now can we go to relax and enjoy books?"
Kristina Summers did not smile over the magazine she was reading at a table in the store's café.
"I think it's horrible that Borders is closing," said the Aurora resident. "It's a sign of the times that video games and electronics are taking precedence over books in our culture. It's also a sign of our continuing destitution. Are you going to spend money on books if you need milk for your kids or gas to get to work? This is a very discouraging corner we're turning now."
Borders, which once owned more than 1,200 stores across the U.S., Australia, Malaysia, Oman, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, was operating 599 stores when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February.
On Thursday, corporation executives will seek permission from federal bankruptcy court to sell its remaining stores to liquidation firms Hilco and Gordon Brothers. If the judge approves the sale, stores could launch their liquidation sales as early as Friday, said Borders Inc. spokesman Mary Davis. All stores should be shuttered by Sept. 30, she added, though no closing schedule is in place.
"It all depends on how fast each store sells all of its merchandise," she said.
Local store employees are forbidden to discuss when their stores will start marking down merchandise or when they expect to close for good, said a staff member at the Naperville Borders.
While some customers Tuesday said they will buy books on the Internet or visit downtown Naperville's Barnes & Noble store once Borders shuts its doors, they agreed they would rather keep shopping at Borders.
"I don't like buying books online because I don't like waiting for them to arrive and worrying that they aren't coming," said 10-year-old Regan Pedersen of Oswego.
When her mother, Tonya Pederson, said the family would probably switch to Barnes & Noble, Regan added, "We'll have to drive 30 minutes longer and use a bunch of gas to get there. I'd rather come back here."
High school seniors Casey Williams of Naperville and Serene Branch of Oswego said neither option works well for them.
"This is where we've always gone for English (literature) books and study guides," Branch said.
"I don't know what I'm going to do," Williams said. "I don't usually buy books anywhere else but here."
The Borders store on Route 59 in Naperville saw considerable customer traffic on Tuesday after it was announced that the bookstore chain is going out of business.
Pull Quote: "This is a place I could come with my kids, that the whole family could enjoy. It's a gathering place for friends and family. Where now can we go to relax and enjoy books?"Liz Merkley, Naperville resident
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