Books-A-Million

Books-A-Million, Inc., also known as BAM!, is a company that owns the second largest U.S. bookstore chain and is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. The company operates over 200 stores in the South, Midwest, and Northeast United States. As of 2010, the company had about 5,500 employees. In addition to its flagship Books-A-Million superstore division, the company also operates the stores branded Books & Company and book and greeting card stores under the name Bookland. The company's stores mainly operate within either shopping malls or lifestyle centers. Most Books-A-Million stores feature Joe Muggs cafés. In addition to its primary retail component, the corporation includes a book wholesale and distribution subsidiary, American Wholesale Book Company (AWBC), an e-commerce division operating as booksamillion.com, and an internet development and services company, NetCentral, in Nashville, Tennessee. In 2011, Books-A-Million became the second largest book retailer in the United States, trailing only Barnes & Noble, after the announcement from larger rival Borders Group that it was liquidating all of its assets and going out of business. Divisions- Bookland: Bookland was the precursor to Books-A-Million. It began as a newsstand on the corner of Court St and Seminary St in Florence, Alabama, started by Clyde W. Anderson. The profits from the stand allowed him to buy a bookstore, which was then inherited by his sons. They opened new stores and incorporated them under the name Bookland in 1964. Bookland survives as a subsidiary of BAM, focusing on smaller stores, though the number of their stores has shrunk significantly from what was at one point 72 locations to 24 different locations in the US, mostly dispersed through the Southeast. Books-A-Million Superstores: The Books-A-Million superstore is the main retail entity of the Books-A-Million corporation. The first superstore was opened in 1988, though the company did not post on the NASDAQ until 1992. Today there are over 200 Books-A-Million superstores. The stores range in size from 8,000 to 36,000 feet, most typically around 30,000. They sell a range of goods including books, periodicals, gifts, and food offered in the Joe Muggs newsstands. Books & Company: Books-A-Million purchased the original Books & Co. store, located in the Dayton, Ohio area, in 1992. A second Books & Co. store, also in Dayton, was opened in 2006. The original Books & Co. store closed on July 17, 2011 and was set to reopen as a 2nd & Charles used bookstore in August 2011. booksamillion.com: BooksAMillion.com is the website for the Books-A-Million superstore chain, launched in 1998, but is specifically listed as its own brand. The site offers online dealings in essentially what the superstore also offers, including books, ebooks, toys and gifts, audio, magazines, movies, and music. Books-a-Million's stock price soared by over 1000% in one week when the company announced its updated website on November 25, 1998, a notable example of speculation during the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s. The company's share price rose from around $3 previously to an all-time closing high of $38.94 on November 27 and an intra-day high of $47.00 on November 30, before quickly pulling back to around $10 two weeks later. By 2000, the share price had returned to $3. NetCentral: NetCentral was acquired by Books-A-Million in 1998, in order to manage their recently opened website. The company is classified in "On-Line Data Base Information Retrieval" and located in Nashville, TN. Upon acquisition, NetCentral "designed and developed the newly refurbished web site for Books-A-Million" The unit designed the current logos for Books-A-Million. Joe Muggs: Joe Muggs are coffeehouses within Books-A-Million superstores. Books-A-Million began including Joe Muggs cafes in their superstores in 2001. Books-A-Million owns and operates the brand. There are a few standalone Joe Muggs Newsstands. The cafe is similar to the Starbucks chain, offering coffee and pastries. 2nd & Charles: 2nd & Charles is a division of Books-A-Million that specializes in trading used books, audio books, CDs, DVDs, video games, game systems, vinyl records and accessories. It opened on September 25, 2010 in Hoover, Alabama across from Riverchase Galleria. They buy and sell based on the condition and popularity of the product. Bulk quantities of discounted remaindered books and magazines are not part of the in-stock inventory, unlike its competitor with a similar product mix in the used media space, Half Price Books. Yogurt Mountain: Yogurt Mountain is a division of Books-A-Million acquired on April 1, 2010. According to the press release, "Yogurt Mountain, an exciting self serve yogurt concept features 16 rotating flavors all of which are fat free or low fat and offers over 50 toppings for consumers to choose from. Yogurt Mountain's stores cater to the growing trend in healthy foods in a unique and entertaining environment." Yogurt Mountain currently operates over 30 locations in 14 states. Controversy: In 2014, Books-A-Million was identified by the publication 24/7 Wall St. as America's worst company to work for, citing low satisfaction among employees due to "high stress and low pay... low chance of promotion, and hours are based on magazine and discount card sales." Since release of the 2014 survey, Books-A-Million's rating has risen and they were not included in the 2015 list of companies.