Borders store closings: How it could affect you

Borders store closings were announced today and nearly 30 percent of the stores are expected to close. What can you do to prepare?

Bookstore giant Borders is closing stores in several states after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the retailer said Wednesday.

The closings are expected to start rolling out in a few weeks – and clearance sales will start this weekend.

Borders: Ebooks a cause

Borders’ bankruptcy is the result of the publishing industry shift from printed books to e-readers like the iPad, Kindle and Nook.

The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based bookstore reportedly owes $41.1 million to Penguin Putnam, $36.9 million to Hachette Book Group, $33.8 million to Simon & Schuster, and $33.5 million to Random House.

Borders: Is your store affected?

The Borders closings are affecting stores across the United States – and some states are more affected than others.

>>Check out the list of Borders store closings here.

Some cities – like Milwaukee – are losing all of their stores. Other cities were spared the closing hammer.

Borders store closings: Use your gift cards now

It’s probably a good time to make a trip to Borders if you have one of their gift cards on hand, even if your store isn’t one of those affected.

Why? Because stores are known to cut-off gift card purchases when reorganizing. Sharper Image did just that in 2008 during their bankruptcy proceedings – they temporarily suspended gift card purchases and instructed their customers to either file a claim as a creditor or take a one-time 25 percent discount on a purchase at Sharper Image. Obviously, neither were popular with customers.

So, get to shopping with those gift cards asap – and support Borders will you still can.

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