A lot of mom and pop bookstore nowadays are closing because of declining business. One mom and pop store that has been around for more than thirty years in a city near where I live is closing because of poor sales. The store has been really historic because President Clinton used to be there signing autograph for his books . The city mayor wanted to preserve the bookstore because it has been a landmark that is why he is encouraging everybody to buy at least one book. Yes, it is like buy a book and donate. This means that you are donating the money that you would have saved when you buy online. This would only save the bookstore temporarily but not long term.

Because of online stores like Amazon, Half.com, etc., a lot of the little stores have gone out of business. The books that are sold online are sometimes 20% to 40% cheaper and that’s after you factor in the shipping and handling. Brick and mortar stores such as Barnes & Noble and Borders have survived this by also adding online stores themselves.

Buying books online can save you money but it has its fault. But one of the disadvantage of buying it online is that you won’t see the contents before hand. Being able to browse the book to see if it is good before you buy is what the local bookstore can do for you. Being able to read it and buy it at the same day you saw it is what makes buying at the local bookstore a good experience. When you buy online, you are pretty much relying on the reviews of other people to see if the book is good. But the only way that you can tell if the book is perfect for you is if you actually see it. So the strategy for most people is to go to the local bookstore first to browse it and buy it online tio save from it. It is a win win for the buyer but a losing proposition for the local bookstores as the books have worn out because people have browse them too much but never got sold.