store.”
“Mega-Media.” Deal shook his head. “What’s that? Discount electronics?”
Arch nodded. “I’d forgotten, Deal. You don’t get out a whole lot.”
“I get out. I just don’t go shopping.”
“Mega-Media is that new super bookstore chain,” Arch said, wearily. “It’s been written up in
Time
, the
Wall Street Journal
, and so on. It’s more than books, actually. Movies, music, interactive texts, associated computer software, some peripherals.” He glanced out the window as if he could see customers already flooding through the competition’s doors.
“Their stores average thirty thousand square feet,” he said. “This one will be twice that, according to Lightner. They’re going to make it their flagship operation, maybe move some of their U.S. operations down here along with it.”
“Their U.S. operations?”
“It’s a fairly far-flung enterprise that a guy named Martin Rosenhaus put together,” Arch said. “He’s created a kind of media holding company. There are the stores, of course, but he’s also got newspapers, magazines, and broadcast outlets worldwide. He’s been going after independent cable operators, too.”
Deal took a breath, put his beer down on the table. That was one thing about the way the world turned. Just start figuring you have a corner on the misery market, somebody else comes along, tries to knock you right off the game board.
“So our good buddy Lightner put Mega-Media into the lease, huh?”
“He says if he hadn’t done it somebody else would have.”
“Eddie has a way with words,” Deal said.
“He’s probably right,” Arch said.
“Bullshit,” Deal said.
“No,” Arch said. “It’s true. They like to target guys like me.”
“Target you? Why would real estate developers want to target you?”
Arch shook his head. “It’s not the developers…” He started to say something else, then broke off. “Hold on a minute,” he said, struggling up out of his sling chair. He went behind the counter, pawed through a stack of papers, came up with a folder that he carried back to Deal.
“Here,” he said. He pulled a magazine out of the folder, put it on top, handed the packet to Deal.
The magazine was a copy of
Publishers Weekly
, opened to a feature story with full-color illustrations: “ THE BOOKSTORE WARS ” went the legend, accompanied by some cutesy art depicting a number of mom-and-pop, cottage-styled bookstores sprouting arms and legs and done up as Western settlers. The “little” stores were diving for cover as a multistoried structure the size of an office building and labeled CHAIN STORE strode down the street, six-shooters blazing.
“Take it home,” Arch was saying. “If I try to explain it to you, you’ll think I’m paranoid.”
Deal folded the paper away. “Arch, I’m your friend. You tell me somebody’s after your butt, I’m not going to doubt you.” He raised the paper between them, tucked it under his arm. “Now what’s this all about?”
Arch took a breath, sat back down in his chair. “Targeting,” he said. “That’s what we—we little guys, that is—call it when one of the major bookstore chains moves into a town where there’s a thriving, locally owned store already.”
Deal nodded. “We have that in the construction business,” he said. “We call it competition.”
Arch waved his remark away. “Competition’s one thing, this is something else altogether. One of the chains’ll come in, buy up property right across the street from a store like mine, one that’s been doing well.” He paused to pick up his beer and wave it in the direction of the bus station again. “They’ll discount bestsellers forty percent, hardcover fiction twenty or thirty percent, give you a card for ten bucks, you can buy anything in the store for ten percent off for the whole next year. They’ll put in a café, a music bar with live entertainment, stay open until midnight seven days a week.” Arch broke
“Mega-Media.” Deal shook his head. “What’s that? Discount electronics?”
Arch nodded. “I’d forgotten, Deal. You don’t get out a whole lot.”
“I get out. I just don’t go shopping.”
“Mega-Media is that new super bookstore chain,” Arch said, wearily. “It’s been written up in
Time
, the
Wall Street Journal
, and so on. It’s more than books, actually. Movies, music, interactive texts, associated computer software, some peripherals.” He glanced out the window as if he could see customers already flooding through the competition’s doors.
“Their stores average thirty thousand square feet,” he said. “This one will be twice that, according to Lightner. They’re going to make it their flagship operation, maybe move some of their U.S. operations down here along with it.”
“Their U.S. operations?”
“It’s a fairly far-flung enterprise that a guy named Martin Rosenhaus put together,” Arch said. “He’s created a kind of media holding company. There are the stores, of course, but he’s also got newspapers, magazines, and broadcast outlets worldwide. He’s been going after independent cable operators, too.”
Deal took a breath, put his beer down on the table. That was one thing about the way the world turned. Just start figuring you have a corner on the misery market, somebody else comes along, tries to knock you right off the game board.
“So our good buddy Lightner put Mega-Media into the lease, huh?”
“He says if he hadn’t done it somebody else would have.”
“Eddie has a way with words,” Deal said.
“He’s probably right,” Arch said.
“Bullshit,” Deal said.
“No,” Arch said. “It’s true. They like to target guys like me.”
“Target you? Why would real estate developers want to target you?”
Arch shook his head. “It’s not the developers…” He started to say something else, then broke off. “Hold on a minute,” he said, struggling up out of his sling chair. He went behind the counter, pawed through a stack of papers, came up with a folder that he carried back to Deal.
“Here,” he said. He pulled a magazine out of the folder, put it on top, handed the packet to Deal.
The magazine was a copy of
Publishers Weekly
, opened to a feature story with full-color illustrations: “ THE BOOKSTORE WARS ” went the legend, accompanied by some cutesy art depicting a number of mom-and-pop, cottage-styled bookstores sprouting arms and legs and done up as Western settlers. The “little” stores were diving for cover as a multistoried structure the size of an office building and labeled CHAIN STORE strode down the street, six-shooters blazing.
“Take it home,” Arch was saying. “If I try to explain it to you, you’ll think I’m paranoid.”
Deal folded the paper away. “Arch, I’m your friend. You tell me somebody’s after your butt, I’m not going to doubt you.” He raised the paper between them, tucked it under his arm. “Now what’s this all about?”
Arch took a breath, sat back down in his chair. “Targeting,” he said. “That’s what we—we little guys, that is—call it when one of the major bookstore chains moves into a town where there’s a thriving, locally owned store already.”
Deal nodded. “We have that in the construction business,” he said. “We call it competition.”
Arch waved his remark away. “Competition’s one thing, this is something else altogether. One of the chains’ll come in, buy up property right across the street from a store like mine, one that’s been doing well.” He paused to pick up his beer and wave it in the direction of the bus station again. “They’ll discount bestsellers forty percent, hardcover fiction twenty or thirty percent, give you a card for ten bucks, you can buy anything in the store for ten percent off for the whole next year. They’ll put in a café, a music bar with live entertainment, stay open until midnight seven days a week.” Arch broke
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