Borders Group Inc. employees have been using social media and blogging to build outcry against a common bookstore practice: Removing covers from unsold books and trashing them.
While bookstores have long used the technique with products they can't sell - since the distributors don't want the products back - it's an issue at the Ann Arbor-based Border's as it closes 200 Waldenbooks.
But the company is responding to the pressure. It announced this week that it will donate 50,000 books as it launches an alliance with Gifts in Kind International.
According to a report on the Huffington Post, "The company says the initial donation will be the beginning of a long-term alliance with Gifts In Kind."
But the Huffington Post also reports that some Borders employees feel that's not enough:
"According to Donate, Not Dumpster!, Borders is only planning to donate "non-returnable" goods, which doesn't include most unsold mass-market books. Thus, a hefty sum of books will still be discarded daily."
Borders took online heat for the book destruction as it faced scrutiny for its holiday strategy and resulting sales results.
The company reported last week that its holiday sales fell 13.7 percent, following a third quarter that saw its sales drop 12.7 percent.
Borders stock also fell this week as news of the holiday sales filtered into the marketplace.
According to an AnnArbor.com report from Wednesday, "Borders' market capitalization - the combined value of all of its shares - was about $71 million this morning."
That value fell to $66 million by the close of stock sales on Friday.
Borders Group Inc. employs more than 800 workers at its Ann Arbor headquarters.
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