Reading Cafe Competitors

Books-A-Million, Inc., is the second-largest book retailer in the nation, operating more than 200 stores in 32 states and online at Booksamillion.com. The company also owns 2nd & Charles, a fast-growing new and used bookstore and pop culture purveyor with more than 40 stores in 18 states and counting. Headquartered in Birmingham, AL, Books-A-Million maintains strong roots in Florence, AL, where it began as a street-corner newsstand in 1917 and still operates its wholesale and distribution subsidiary, American Wholesale Book Company.

With almost 300 bookshops and employing over 3000 booksellers , Waterstones is the leading high street bookseller in the UK and Ireland. Amsterdam and Brussels play host to Waterstones’ European presence, and two further jewels in the bookseller’s crown are London’s Hatchards and Dublin’s legendary bookshop Hodges Figgis. Waterstones has opened several new shops over the last few years and invested in existing locations. The company also achieved a turnaround of fortunes for their online platform, Waterstones.com. In 2018 Waterstones further acquired British bookshop chain Foyles. Good bookselling and bookseller expertise is the driving force behind Waterstones’ bookshops, and every year Waterstones runs thousands of author events across the country from weekly story time sessions and book clubs to author talks and large book signings. One of the biggest events of the year is the prestigious Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, voted for by Waterstones’ expert booksellers. Other notable activity include the Waterstones Book Of The Year announcement and support for the Waterstones Children’s Laureate.

ThriftBooks is the world’s largest online, independent seller of used books, having sold more than 160 million used and new books since its inception. Founded in Seattle in 2003 and backed by KCB Management, ThriftBooks operates multiple processing centers throughout the US that purchase, grade, and distribute used and rare/collectible books. ThriftBooks utilizes proprietary software to identify and list books, as well as a sophisticated pricing model that dynamically prices books across a variety of online platforms, including ThriftBooks.com, Amazon, eBay, and others. Customers who shop at ThriftBooks.com can earn free books through the company’s loyalty program, ReadingRewards.