~post by Katie, Bargain Book Manager
BookPeople is a pretty big place. We actually carry in-store about 100,000 individual books. There are two sections I find particularly confusing, and thought others might also find them confusing: Bargain Books and Clearance Books….also known as Sale Books and Last Chance Books. See, I told you it was confusing.
Sale (or Bargain) Books are what are known in the book business as remainders. They are usually books that have been over printed or the paperback edition has come out and the publishers still have extra hardcovers on hand. Sometimes publishers just need to make room in their warehouses. Whatever the reason, they sell these books to remainder houses and we then buy them at a reduced price. This results in a lower price for you. Sometimes they get marked on the bottom edge with a marker line or dot. This is to ensure they don’t get sold at the regular list price. Besides that mark (which isn’t always present) they are exactly the same as the full-priced book. We also sometimes get European versions in with alternative covers. Pretty awesome, right?
Our marvelous Bargain Buyer, Barry, has been doing this a long time and has a special talent for bringing in great titles. They run the genre gamut from history to science, religion, sci-fi, fiction, horror, cooking, kids and even some non-book stuff like journals and DVDs. These Sale/Bargain Books are located all over the store. They always have a BookPeople price tag on the outside.
Look for them in the foyer, on one of the big tables when you first walk in the store (we call it the Akron…long story), the northwest corner by the registers, the second floor by the rest rooms and in the carpeted area, and finally on various endcaps. They are broken down into sections, but can still be hard to locate. Ask any employee for help or if I’m around, I can give you a personal tour (seriously, I’m all about the Bargain Books!) We put out new stuff 3-4 times a week so inventory is always changing. It’s a super good way to fill up your time if you just feel like browsing.
The other category is Last Chance Books. This sounds very “impending doom”-like, but I promise no books are ever killed or hurt here, we always find good homes for them. Last Chance Books are books that have been damaged, usually only slightly. A torn or dented cover, a crooked binding…sometimes you can’t even find a flaw. Or sometimes they are books from sections where we need to make some room on the shelves for newer books that are coming in. These books are 50% off of the list price printed on the book. This is a great place to find new releases for less. Shipping boxes of books across the country can be a bit treacherous and books that aren’t in new condition when we open the box go to Last Chance. You can also find nice art, photography and cooking books here. Those type of books are often handled a lot and get some wear. If you’re not super picky, there are some amazing finds. They are also great for interior decorating, props and art projects. The Last Chance section is located on the second floor in the carpeted area….right next to the Sale Book section (refer back to why this is all so confusing at the top of the page). It is separated into Fiction and Nonfiction, with some shelves of oversized things. Books are added almost daily so check back often.
Okay, I hope this has been helpful. Keep reading!
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