Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble book signing event.
July 26, 2023
With Brunswick location, Barnes & Noble marks its first Maine bookstore opening since 1995
Barnes & Noble
The new Barnes and Noble, located at 147 Bath Road Merrymeeting Plaza in Brunswick.
Still, looking for that perfect summer read? Well, book lovers, bookstore chain Barnes & Noble officially opened its doors on Wednesday in the space formerly occupied by Dressbarn.
It is Barnes & Noble's first opening in Maine since 1995, when it opened its Augusta store. Today, Augusta and Brunswick are the New York-based chain's only Maine locations.
On Wednesday, the Brunswick store, at 147 Bath Road Merrymeeting Plaza, held a ceremony and hosted Maine author and blogger Lisa Steel, who signed copies of her book, "The Fresh Eggs Daily Cookbook."
“Opening a new Barnes & Noble has long been a dream of mine,” said Andrew Crouse, the store manager and a Barnes & Noble employee of 13 years. “Brunswick has never had a bookstore of this size and scope, and the booksellers here can’t wait to welcome the community into our beautiful new shop.”
In addition to a wide selection of books, the store will sell educational toys, games and gifts.
Barnes & Noble says it is seeing a period of "tremendous growth." Last year, it opened more bookstores than in a decade from 2009-19. The chain expects to open over 30 bookstores in 2023. It has roughly 600 stores.
Since 2019, Barnes & Noble has been owned by a New York private equity firm, Elliott Investment Management.
“To be opening new bookstores at such a pace would have been unthinkable just a few years ago,” said James Daunt, CEO of Barnes & Noble. “Very few things are as exciting as opening a new bookstore in an area that has been begging for one. This year we have had much to celebrate and bringing this stunning new Barnes & Noble to the Brunswick community is high on the list.”
The happenings at the plaza
Courtesy / WS DEVELOPMENT
Merrymeeting Plaza.
In February, the Merrymeeting Plaza, a 160,000-square-foot shopping center, had a shake-up with a mix of openings and closings.
On Feb. 2, the plaza's owners signed leases with New England restaurant chain Margarita's and Barnes & Noble. This was part of the owner's strategy to bring in local, regional and national retailers.
A week later, the plaza’s Bed Bath & Beyond was named one of the 149 locations targeted for the first round of closure nationwide before the chain filed for bankruptcy a month later.
Other tenants in the plaza include locally owned Pepper’s Landing Restaurant, Serenity Nails, and Fascination Station; Maine-based franchise Sun Tan City; Shaw’s Supermarket; and national chains Petsmart, CVS and AAA.
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