Barnes & Noble Booksellers

Ahhh… a little mental stimulation amongst a sea of liquor and gun stores. Thanks, Yuma!

One of the smaller BnN I’ve been to. Wish they had more of a lounge area with couches and seating, other than that it’s decent.

This is a mixed review. First let me start by saying that, I enjoy BEING at B&N to select a book, drink a cup of coffee, but wish they had more sitting than the benches by the magazine. Its nice to read a book around books with a cup of coffee, especially after buying it. Being in a small town, like Yuma, I figured that customer service would be better. So, the store, is really nice, could use more seating, but I could survive. The issue, is customer service.
So I took my son, who is 5, to the Marvel reading event on a Saturday. First, the manager, explains that ALL readings are done at 11 AM on Saturdays and apologized for the inconvenience of not having a time posted for the reading. (We showed up at 10 AM, because my wife was informed by a staff member that the reading started at 10AM) Ok, so no problem, things happen, perhaps it was just misunderstanding. So, they are literally scrambling to make this event happen, as other people have been waiting as well since around 10AM. The manager comes over and apologizes and explains to us that the previous night’s event, «Olaf» went late after working hours on Friday, until 9PM, so the staff was unprepared for this morning. Again, okay, so, perhaps this is just a bad chain of events, they are trying and a reading will happen.
So, finally the reading begins, and some minor activities afterwards (coloring), and they did provide some treats from Starbucks for the children and parents. The manager did attempt to add some humor to the event and again was apologetic. While the children were coloring, they handed out slips for the parents to fill out for prizes, which were unavailable at the moment (no explanation as to why or what the prizes were, presumably for the children). The manager explained that winners will be contacted the following day.
Before I get into the true issue here, let me say the reader and staff pulled it together and truly made it happen for the children. This was the saving grace of the whole thing.
So, the next day, around 230PM, I get a phone call, which I missed, due to being outside and grilling on a weekend. I see the number which I don’t recognize, notice there is no voice mail associated, and then my wife reminds me, that B&N could have called me with the prize. So I return the call about an hour later at 330PM. I was placed on hold for about 4 minutes, until someone answered. I explained to them I believed someone called me about the prize, and was explained that they moved on and all prizes have been awarded. I was a bit taken aback, and asked why no voice mail was left or given the opportunity to call back and claim the prize. The staff member speaking to me (not sure who it was talking, could have been manager, but I won’t say it was) informed me that there were no rules about prizes and they just wanted to get rid of them, so they have all been awarded, and if someone did not answer their phone, they called the next person. I explained to this individual that that was a very cheap and shady move to pull, not to mention unprofessional and lacking all kinds of courtesy.
This whole event which was an attempt to push sales of Marvel material for the children, promoting the movie, and bring people into your store, was meant for the children. The lack of professionalism about the entire chain of events causes me concern, looking back to the tardiness and apparent unpreparedness of the staff to the end where I was contacted and ultimately skipped because I did not answer my phone. Well, I understand there were no rules about the prizes, but really? Is it difficult to leave a message and say, if you do not call us back within a set time frame, we have to move to the next person? Then the back peddling staff member trying to explain why this was done, which my impression was to ‘move merchandise’ they did not see sales for.
This whole review may seem petty, but coming from a business owner’s standpoint, sales, especially in retail like books, whose customer base are among the most loyal repeat customers, this type of attitude and unprofessional quality of service is poor in my view. This is a simple type of business. The employees seemed unaware that an event was even happening until enough people asked.
Okay, so bottom line, I feel management here is to blame. Having unprepared staff is not the staff’s fault, but management. Being apologetic is fine, but to place blame on events and provide excuses is another, just fix the problem like you tried. Then, don’t salvage the problem and essentially cheat children out of a promotional prize that costs your store nothing. I can fully tell you, until management changes, I am done dropping money in this place. With personnel like this in charge, its no wonder the neighborhood bookstores have disappeared across this country, which is a shame. This was the last type of retail establishment where I expected customer service to be meaningful.

best Barnes and Noble in the world

So I need to confess — as much as this is a bookstore, I use it as a rest stop on my travels between San Diego and Phoenix. There’s no real rest stop in Yuma but this place always has a clean bathroom as well as a Starbucks. It’s not in a touristy area and a bit off the beaten path so never really crowded. The Starbucks itself is hit or miss. This last time I stopped here my mocha was a little too weak and watered down tasting. I HATES THAT! But it’s basically a chill place to hang out — well air conditioned and sometimes entertaining. Once I watched some Barnes and Noble manager scolding a subordinate because the board games near the front were not arranged exactly like the printed diagram from corporate headquarters he held in his hand suggested. Some of the boxes were not sticking out at the right angle. LOL. NOw that I think of it, this is probably one of the few times I stick my head into a Barnes and Noble PERIOD. Anything I would buy from Barnes And Noble I usually buy from Amazon. So I enjoy this place as much as possible. Who knows when it might go the way of Borders, Blockbuster, and the Dodo Bird.

I love Barnes and Nobel. This place always has what I’m looking for, it has a quite atmosphere, the café is yummy and the employees are very helpful and polite. Well, at least most of them. On several occasions, I have gone in there to see the same manager acting very prickly and intimidating with a «holier-​than-​thou» attitude not only to the staff but to customers. I’ve witnessed him rolling his eyes and glaring at customers that come through the door. He’s been my cashier on some of my visits and was very short and cold. This is a shame because this store could be REALLY great.

Great place… had what I was looking for. :D

Closest real bookstore to the Imperial Valley, thank God for e-​readers. Helpful employees, good selection. Just don’t accidentally leave your cell phone in the bathroom like I did or it will be gone in less than 5. Don’t worry, I got it back after tracking it to the thief’s car on the hubby’s phone. at least there was a Starbucks inside so I could enjoy my wait for Yuma’s finest. ;)

A great place to chill during the summer months here in yuma. :)
it is the only really big bookstore we have in yuma. So if you need to buy a book this is the place to go. They also have your typical starbucks like café inside if you need a bit to eat.