Barnes & Noble just fired CEO Demos Parneros after fourteen months on the job.
Barnes & Noble said Tuesday that it has fired CEO Demos Parneros for violating company policies.
The company did not specify exactly which policies were violated. It did say, however, that Parneros' termination "is not due to any disagreement with the Company regarding its financial reporting, policies or practices or any potential fraud relating thereto."
Parneros will not receive any severance and is no longer a director on its board, the company said in its statement. Barnes & Noble said it fired Parneros under the advice of its law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.
Barnes & Noble said it will begin its search for a new CEO and that it has tapped a group of leaders to run the company in the interim. That group includes chief financial officer Allen Lindstrom, chief merchandising officer Tim Mantel and vice president of stores Carl Hauch.
Parneros joined the company in 2016 and was named CEO in 2017. He was previously president of Staples' North American stores and online.
Barnes & Noble's prior CEO was Ronald Boire, who lasted eight months on the job before being fired.
Previously: Barnes & Noble's "Bloody Monday"
Barnes & Noble Reports Holiday Revenues Down"
Barnes & Noble Pivots to Books
Related Stories
Barnes & Noble will shift to smaller stores and is turning to books to attempt to save its business:
The retailer had hoped that toys, games and other items would shore up its results, especially as Amazon.com Inc. ate away at its traditional business. But its non-book sales have flagged the past two quarters, and now the company is putting its focus back firmly on reading.
Barnes & Noble will "place a greater emphasis on books, while further narrowing our non-book assortment," Chief Executive Officer Demos Parneros said in a statement.
The failed foray is just one of the challenges bearing down on the chain. Customer traffic is down, and Barnes & Noble is losing market share. Though the release of "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" reinvigorated sales a year ago, the company is now paying for that blip: Same-store sales fell 6.3 percent last quarter, with about half of that decline coming from the drop-off in Harry Potter demand.
Barnes & Noble's Nook e-book business also has languished, a further sign of Amazon's tightening grip on readers. It all added up to a loss of 41 cents a share in the fiscal second quarter, compared with a deficit of 29 cents a year earlier. Analysts projected a 26-cent loss for the period, which ended Oct. 28.
Barnes & Noble may benefit from short leases, allowing it to close or downsize stores as needed. New stores may be only about 40% as large as the average existing location.
Headline credit where it is due.
Also at WSJ:
"There's too much stuff in the stores," said Barnes & Noble Inc. Chief Executive Demos Parneros, in an interview after the company's earnings call. "We're drawing a line in the sand and reducing the assortment of gift items and what I'd call tchotchkes. For example, we love journals. But we have way too many. We're refocusing on books."
Related: Amazon Opens Physical Bookstore in Seattle
Amazon Books Opens in New York City
Barnes & Noble reported their sales from the 2017 holiday quarter, and the news is not good.
B&N today reported holiday sales for the nine-week holiday period ending December 30, 2017. Total sales for the holiday period were $953 million, declining 6.4% as compared to the prior year. Comparable store sales also declined 6.4% for the holiday period, while online sales declined 4.5%.
Entering December, the Company was encouraged by the comparable store sales improvements throughout the second quarter and into November. However, sales trends softened in December, primarily due to lower traffic.
The Company's book business declined 4.5%, outperforming the overall comparable store sales performance. Declines in the gift, music and DVD categories accounted for nearly half of the comparable store sales decrease. The Company said it remains focused on executing its strategic turnaround plan, which includes an aggressive expense management program.
The keywords are "aggressive expense management program," which translates to "lowering" the cost of employees, and closing and downsizing stores.
Previously: Barnes & Noble Pivots to Books
On Monday, February 12th, Barnes & Noble fired a number of employees.
From CNBC:
Barnes & Noble is trimming its staff, laying off lead cashiers, digital leads and other experienced workers in a company-wide clearing, CNBC has learned from sources familiar with the matter.
The news came abruptly for many workers who showed up Monday morning at various Barnes & Noble locations to be notified that they no longer had a job, the people said. The number of affected workers couldn't immediately be determined. As of April 29 of last year, Barnes & Noble employed about 26,000 people.
"[Barnes & Noble] has been reviewing all aspects of the business, including our labor model," a spokeswoman told CNBC about the layoffs. "Given our sales decline this holiday, we're adjusting staffing so that it meets the needs of our existing business and our customers. As the business improves, we'll adjust accordingly."
From The Digital Reader:
The initial report said B&N had fired "lead cashiers, digital leads, and other experienced workers", but what that report missed - and why this was worth bringing up a day later - was that B&N also fired nearly all of its receiving managers in what current and ex-employees are calling Bloody Monday.
[...] When B&N fires a digital sales lead, it means they'll sell fewer Nooks. This is no big deal given how B&N's digital revenues have fallen since 2013. When B&N fires a head cashier, it means you're in for longer waits at the register.
But when B&N fires its receiving managers, it means that B&N won't have the merchandise to sell you because the person who was responsible for making sure shelves get stocked does not work there any more.
Previously: Barnes & Noble Reports Holiday Revenues Down
Barnes & Noble Pivots to Books
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Apparition on Thursday July 05 2018, @10:31AM (4 children)
A CEO fired and removed from the board without warning and without a severance package makes me think that there may be shenanigans involved. This is also like the fifth CEO Barnes & Noble has had in the past six years, IIRC.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday July 05 2018, @10:59AM
I was thinking that the "pivot to books" wasn't working until I saw the "violating company policies" bit. Another Krzanich-like ousting?
https://marketrealist.com/2018/07/behind-the-june-21-resignation-of-intel-ceo-brian-krzanich [marketrealist.com]
https://seekingalpha.com/article/4183500-intel-3-failures-brian-krzanich-part-1 [seekingalpha.com]
https://seekingalpha.com/article/4184763-intel-3-failures-brian-krzanich-part-2 [seekingalpha.com]
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by zocalo on Thursday July 05 2018, @11:01AM (2 children)
UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!
(Score: 3, Funny) by FatPhil on Thursday July 05 2018, @11:54AM (1 child)
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 3, Insightful) by zocalo on Thursday July 05 2018, @02:01PM
UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!
(Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 05 2018, @12:10PM (6 children)
https://goodereader.com/blog/bookselling/barnes-and-noble-staff-disclose-why-the-bookstore-is-so-dysfunctional [goodereader.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 05 2018, @01:20PM (3 children)
Had no idea that B&N was in such tough shape. I refuse to use Amazon (reasons) and often use the B&N website for books, including used books (from their "marketplace").
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 05 2018, @01:30PM (1 child)
Odds are very good that, barring a miracle, Barnes & Noble won't last past 2020. The few people I know in the "book scene" are speculating for a closure announcement around March 2019.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday July 05 2018, @01:53PM
One last
Christmasholiday hurrah, eh?[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 05 2018, @05:26PM
I tried to use B&N's online rather than Amazon (reasons). Books listed as in-stock took two weeks for them to ship. I've ordered used books from small local bookstores via Abe and received them in far less time than that. That was my last order from B&N.
(Score: 2) by crafoo on Thursday July 05 2018, @02:56PM (1 child)
You know, it's not like a bookstore chain is a vastly complex business with an incredibly complex and diverse supply chain, customers, and regulations. It's a fucking bookstore. How absolutely amateur-tier do you have to be at business to fail at selling books? The customers are there, and fairly reliable. The supply chain is mature and simple: fucking books, fucking magazines. Make an environment book people feel comfortable in and enjoy. Pay your bills on time. Keep the place clean.
It's a real testament to the failure of modern MBAs and marketing wanks that they have failed so badly at this very simple business.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 05 2018, @06:51PM
Not so simple either. Booksellers need to keep a store full of books to give customers something to look at, but many books won't get bought. In the past, the stores could just send unsold copies to the publisher and have them take the risk. But with Amazon moving more books in a more predictable manner, I don't know if that model still works.
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 05 2018, @02:43PM (1 child)
B&N, IMO, is like an upscale homeless shelter. Enjoy your original priced books which have been fondled by the filthiest of street people.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday July 06 2018, @10:21AM
I see that AngelHack guy got into this thread, as well...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 05 2018, @03:07PM
Are you sure this article is not about the Whitehouse?
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 05 2018, @03:46PM
He ordered something from Amazon, which is a big no no in B&N land.