Bob’s Bookshelf
Hear from Used Book Superstore owner Bob Ticehurst
Each week Bob responds to your feedback and gives you updates about store happenings in our newsletter.
Tell Us What You Think!
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FEBRUARY 15, 2012
“I always find something that would be almost impossible to find anywhere else.”
This is one of our favorite compliments! Aside from big hits and new releases, we pride our stores on our eclectic inventory which makes shopping here like a real treasure hunt. Each day, the stores add hundreds, if not thousands, of books to the shelves so check back often as the selection is constantly changing. We’re also working on ways to make the selection even better so stay tuned.
“Sometimes I find books in the wrong section which makes it hard to find what I want. Why does that happen?”
As much as we think of them as superheroes, our booksellers are still human! Most of our 100,000+ stock is shelved in over 100 categories, but from time to time something ends up in the wrong section. We’re getting better organized all the time and we can always help you look for a title if you need it! With recent system improvements all stores should be stocking books in the same sections. If a book is labeled with the wrong category, the booksellers will fix it in our system so that it will be correct in the future. It takes a little effort, but over time the results will be noticeable.
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FEBRUARY 8, 2012
“Love the prices! I’m not sure I’ll ever pay retail for a book again. As a homeschooling family, you’ve helped me build a fantastic home library for my children’s education.”
We love deals so we get it – once you pay less it’s hard to go back. Luckily, with our every day low prices you don’t have to! So glad to hear our books are offering a quality education!
“I don’t get the fluctuation in prices on the used items. I always check every copy because the prices can be different by a few dollars.”
Pricing is based on our cost to buy the book, so depending on when the book was purchased the price may vary. We expect that you’ll see this issue less and less, as we’re working on a system to reduce or eliminate different prices on used books with matching ISBNs. Our inventory and pricing system is relatively new so we’re constantly working through changes and bugs as well as adding improvements. If different prices are listed on used copies on the shelf we will always honor the lowest. Unlike most stores, we don’t mark up or mark down prices on existing inventory when a new selling price is introduced, meaning if a used copy of A Tale of Two Cities is on the shelf for $2.99 and two weeks later we price a used copy at $3.99 we don’t go back and raise the price of the existing copy. This can create two prices for the same book. We’re trying to keep this to a minimum, though you still may see some price variations on the shelves. As long as the multiple copies in question are all used books with the same ISBN (meaning they are the same edition) we’ll always honor the lowest marked price. This policy applies only to used books.
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FEBRUARY 1, 2012
“I brought my out of state guests to your store and they couldn’t believe the price and selection. They can’t wait to come back!”
We’re flattered! Our formula of low prices and huge selection is rare around here so we love to hear that out-of-towners think so too!
“Your books are all donated so why aren’t they cheaper?”
To clarify – we buy everything that we sell from vendors, publishers and our sister company, Got Books. No books are donated to the store, but you can donate to our nonprofit partner RARA here. The prices we charge reflect the cost we paid for the item, which is why a lot of newer or more popular books tend to cost more.
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JANUARY 25, 2012
“At first I saw no need to barcode the old books, but after a Burlington staffer was able to locate an original book by John Muir, I saw the beauty of the system.”
Glad you found it! Our barcodes let us know what we have in stock and where it is on our shelves, so they are vital to our operations and can also make your day like seen here!
“I find it hard to see what kind of book I’m looking at – new, used or bargain. I need to know for certain sales, so how can I tell?”
Any book can be identified by the price sticker on the back. It should have a barcode, the price and some text that says either ‘NEW’, ‘USED’ or ‘BARGAIN’. Any bookseller would be happy to help if you have trouble finding it.
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JANUARY 18, 2012
Looking Forward 2012
When I started “Bob’s Bookshelf” back in December I did it so that I would have a direct connection with each of you as customers of the Used Book Superstores. It’s been a great way to get additional feedback and to let you know what we’re thinking about for the future.
Today, I want to tell you about some successes and some new ideas we’re working on for 2012.
I want to sincerely thank each and every customer for making us successful. Our holiday sales were above projections and ahead of last year. For the first time since we started more than three years ago, Used Book Superstore was a holiday shopping destination for new toys and games, new books and gift cards. Despite the gloom and doom surrounding the closing of Borders and many independent book stores, our business remains healthy and growing. By offering great deals on used books, DVDs and more, AND an interesting combination of new merchandise, we’re stronger than ever.
In the coming months, we are looking at expanding to new areas in the NE area. You asked for it – we are considering new locations south of Boston and west of Boston. Stay tuned for the news as soon as we finalize it.
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JANUARY 11, 2012
“I’m going back to school and need books – how can I order them through your store?”
Glad you asked! While we may not have the textbooks you are looking for in the store right now, we can order most text books and have them available for you in a few days. We can usually order them for much less than what the school charges. Just ask any bookseller in our stores and they can place your order.
“I hate finding new books mixed in with the used books. They should be on a separate shelf.”
We understand the desire to shop new or used, but after much discussion about what would be best for customers, we believe keeping like authors and subjects together on the same shelves makes it much easier for customers and helps us stay organized. This gives customers a choice of new or used and avoids a book appearing to be out-of-stock. At this time some new books and bargain books will be on the main shelves, while others are in their own displays up front. It’s easy to identify – all books say either ‘NEW’ or ‘USED’ on their price sticker on the back of the book. Also, remember that new books make up just a small percentage of overall books in the store.
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JANUARY 4, 2012
“I love how quickly your merchandise changes. I could go every day and find something new!”
Thousands of items are added each day so you can find something new as often as you’d like!
“You have very limited selection for some genres.”
Ouch. We know – we’re working on it! This is one of the major things we’re trying to correct this year and we’ve come a long way so far, so make sure to check back in!
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DECEMBER 28, 2011
Happy New Year!
On behalf of every store manager, every bookseller, and myself, thank you for your continued support of our stores.
We have some innovative new ideas for 2012 that you’ll see rolling out soon. Your continued feedback is critical to our success – we are implementing many of the things that you have suggested. My commitment is to give you outstanding service, ridiculously low prices, and a huge selection of books, movies and much more all from a local business!
Our stores are always evolving (we’d like to think for the better) and we can’t wait to share everything that’s in store for the upcoming year with you. Remember, all store managers, our executive staff and I receive and read all customer feedback so if you’ve got something to say leave me feedback here.
Have a safe & happy holiday season.
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DECEMBER 21, 2011
“I love Dave in Danvers. He recommended a music book that is the best I’ve ever read!”
Glad to hear it! Dave, like many of our seasoned booksellers, is an amazing asset to our team. We’ll tell him you think so too!
“Get rid of the employees’ attitude. They are not always friendly.”
We hate to hear this. Many people have great things to say about our hardworking booksellers, so feedback like this is tough. All managers and I see these comments and discuss, and I’ve stressed that there’s no excuse for anything but exceptional customer service.
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DECEMBER 14, 2011
There’s been a firestorm of controversy this week over the new Amazon price checking application. Have you heard about it? Designed for smart phones, it lets you compare prices with Amazon while you are in the store. Many retailers have complained that it is unfair.
I love Amazon. They offer great deals for customers. It doesn’t bother me because it helps get people into the stores engaging with our products. Many of the people who price checked end up buying at the store anyway. Maybe the online discount and time to order online isn’t enough of a motivator. We have extremely competitive prices for new and used books that are, in most cases, less than online prices. We’re the largest independent used book sellers in New England because we adapt to what our customers want.
I want to hear from you. Have you used the new Amazon app?
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DECEMBER 7, 2011
Welcome to a new feature. Each week you’ll hear directly from me, Bob Ticehurst, president of the Used Book Superstore. I’ll share our successes, tell you how we’re improving and what new and exciting things are happening. Thank you for your continued support.
“Much of my Christmas shopping came from your store – LOVE the 3D bookmarks!”
Thanks! We’ve put out more gift-worthy items than ever this year. Glad to hear you enjoy them!
“All used books should be the same price, but they’re not.”
Each book we sell, new or used, is priced to reflect the cost we paid to buy it for inventory. Charging one price for all books would severely limit our selection, like it used to in the past. We now have more recently published and more popular used books than we ever had before. We still have a huge selection of used hardcovers at $2.99 and paperbacks at $1.99.