Donate, Not Dumpster!

Donate, Not Dumpster! campaign continues at new Facebook page

2010-02-05T09:49:00.000-08:00

As of Feb. 1, the recent Waldenbooks store closings are officially over. We're now shining a light on how big publishers and book chains regularly trash at least one billion unsold books a year. If you want to keep pressuring these large corporations to change their ways, help continue the campaign by joining our new Facebook page:

Tell book chains & publishers: Donate, Not Dumpster!

Thank you to the 15,000+ people who stood up and told Borders to do the right thing! See our recent post for the full report card on how Borders responded to getting called out for dumpstering.

As a result of this campaign, Borders has pledged to recycle trashed books at ALL stores, which they hadn't been doing before, just heaving them into dumpsters. Plus they're now donating "non-returnable product" (mostly non-book merchandise) to non-profits which had also regularly been trashed.

Nothing has changed regarding the vast majority of the books Borders is still trashing (estimated to be 80% of all unsold books at chain stores), so we're continuing to spotlight their wasteful policies along with those of other chains and big publishers.

Called out for dumpstering, has Borders changed its ways?

2010-01-28T12:05:00.000-08:00

In three days, the Waldenbooks and Borders Express store closings will officially be over (even though the vast majority of locations have already shut their doors), and more than 15,000 people have stood up to tell Borders to Donate, Not Dumpster! It's a good time to review Borders' overall response to getting called out for dumpstering.

After being outed by employees for trashing books when this campaign started Nov. 30, Borders repeatedly denied it to the public, claiming "we will not be disposing of books as a result of the 182 Waldenbooks store closures." Borders executives stepped forward after the story broke in HuffPo on Dec. 11, and repeated these denials.

Behind the scenes, they were scrambling to cover their tracks. On Dec. 31, all stores without recycling programs were instructed to stop dumpstering books and other merchandise ("non-returnable product") until further notice. On Jan. 7, this directive was clarified when stores were internally notified that the company would now be recycling all the books it was regularly throwing away in dumpsters.

This was the first positive action taken on this issue by Borders. Kudos for their decision to start recycling the formerly trashed books.

How many stores this included is unclear, and why recycling initiatives haven't been in place at all 800+ Borders locations for years is mystifying. This action is something Borders never publicly announced, and Borders' PR department hasn't mentioned it much, because to stress the point would mean admitting how irresponsible the company's merchandise disposal policies had been up until Dec. 31, 2009.

Even recycled, the books are still being discarded. What about re-use? If the books are being destroyed anyway, couldn't they ALL be donated? Borders still needs to work with publishers to find a better way.

As the store closings accelerated during January, Borders kept stonewalling. They swore up and down that "we do not expect to have product to donate or to dispose of" in e-mails sent in response to thousands of concerned customers who contacted them.

And they kept disposing of hundreds of thousands books in the meantime, stripping the covers from whatever books they could return to publishers, and shipping the coverless books back to distribution centers for recycling. What the Washington Post described as a "mountain" of books were trashed.

Then, as the story spread more widely in the blogsophere, on Facebook, and Twitter, Borders publicly announced a gesture on Jan. 21 to donate some goods destined for the dumpsters to non-profits.

We applaud Borders for taking a second step in the right direction by agreeing to donate some "non-returnable product," most of which includes items other than books.

Although nothing has changed regarding the vast majority of the BOOKS they're still trashing - estimated to be 80% or more of all unsold books at chain stores.

Mass-market books will continue to be destroyed by Borders or returned to publishers for disposal, millions of books a year. These include all kinds of paperbacks – best-sellers, thrillers, mysteries, sci-fi, the works. Unsold hardcovers also get returned to publishers, and 65 – 95 percent are destroyed by pulping.

We remain hopeful that these two steps aren't Borders' only response to dealing with the problem. If so, they've come up short.

They also claim to have "started a dialogue within the publishing industry to address industry wide practices -- which all book retailers practice, not just Borders -- that could possibly be changed with positive impacts on communities and the environment." And we'll take them at their word, and look forward to hearing what comes out of it.

However, as Borders' PR team has reminded us, they are not the only book chain trashing books. Now that public awareness has been raised about dumpstering, it's time for Barnes & Noble and other chains to have a light shined their way. And big publishers are also to blame.

So this is the last week we're going to focus solely on Borders' role in this system.

Borders' current shaky financial situation was underscored this week by the resignation of the company's CEO Ron Marshall after barely a year on the job, and the news they will be laying off 10% of corporate staff. We've been calling for Borders to take a stand against their own industry's wasteful business practices, but the reality is that what they've done so far is all we can realistically expect from Borders for now. They're too focused on their own survival to do much else.

But the steps Borders has already taken in response to pressure from its employees, customers, and book lovers everywhere are a partial victory for everyone who spoke out, e-mailed, called, blogged, Tweeted, and otherwise helped Tell Borders to do the right thing. Thank you all!

Tell Apple: Don't partner with publishers or chains who won't stop trashing books

2010-01-27T11:29:00.000-08:00

As Apple introduces its much-hyped "iSlate"(?) tablet, big publishers are salivating at the thought of new profits if it helps take e-books mainstream ("All five major publishers - Penguin, Harper Collins, Simon and Schuster, MacMillan and Hachette - are on the bookstore starting this afternoon." - CNET, Apple iPad tablet makes debut). Meanwhile, many of us who care about books are wondering what the digital future holds for reading and the printed word.

After the dirty little secret of book trashing by chains and publishers got publicized during this campaign, some folks have commented that e-readers are the answer to stopping the waste. But they're not the only answer, because we're willing to bet most people who care about books being trashed recognize the value of being able to hold a real book in your hand.

Breanna Sylvester at 11:43 am:
-you can't read an e-book in the tub w dry fingers without risk of electrocution.
-you don't need batteries for a real book, they're available anytime
-if you spill something on a book, its easier & less expensive to replace than an e-book
-you can't fill a bookcase with an e-book.
-you don't get the author's originality & artful expressions with an e-book like you can with a real book, some illustrations are meant for paper.
-most children won't be allowed to get an e-book, too costly to expect a child not to ruin. & if a child doesn't read early on, they're more likely to be illiterate.

Borders is not the only chain destroying unsold books. And big publishers are also to blame. Barnes & Noble, rumored to have already inked a deal with Apple, is trashing even more books on a regular basis than Borders because of its size. At 1300+ stores (including its college bookstores), B&N is the country's largest book retailer. Now that public awareness has been raised about dumpstering, expect Barnes & Noble and other chains and publishers to have a light shined their way soon.

The root problem behind all of this is the outdated business model the industry's using - resulting in overprinting by big publishers, over-ordering by big chains, and mountains of unsold books trashed.

Because they're the ones carrying out the actual destruction of books in most cases, retailers have a responsibility as well as publishers to end this wasteful practice. And it's big chains who are the primary culprits – independent bookstores order smarter, and trash and/or return far fewer books.

There's no excuse for this kind of waste in an era when more and more of us are aware we all need to be good stewards of the planet. Solutions? We can keep pressuring big publishers and chains to change their ways.

Borders CEO resigns - will they now work with publishers to stop trashing books?

2010-01-26T08:58:00.000-08:00

Today, Borders announced the resignation of its CEO, Ron Marshall.

During this campaign, many employees and insiders have come forward to reveal how Marshall, who took over as CEO barely a year ago, managed to worsen the company's already shaky financial situation by trying to sell books like frozen foods (he formerly ran a grocery chain).

He also instituted countless senseless policies (such as employee no-blogging contracts and mandating that specific titles be pushed on customers) that have resulted in employee near-rebellion. If this means Borders will now be more open to working with publishers to change its own industry's wasteful system of trashing books, great.

Why won't Borders donate hundreds of thousands of soon-to-be-trashed books sitting boxed up at Waldenbooks stores?

2010-01-24T06:55:00.000-08:00

For weeks, we've been publicizing the fact that hundreds of thousands of books have already been destroyed by Borders during the Waldenbooks store closings. But here's an equally important fact – RIGHT NOW, there are still additional hundreds of thousands of books sitting boxed up at the closing Waldenbooks stores without recycling programs that Borders says they WILL NOT DONATE to non-profits.

Books from closing Waldenbooks store, waiting to be trashed

These mass-market books aren't part of Borders' recent gesture to donate some "non-returnable" product, which doesn't include most unsold books at Borders stores.

The mass-markets are not just romance novels, contrary to the company's spin. It's all kinds of paperbacks – best-sellers, thrillers, mysteries, sci-fi, the works. And some hardcover books, too.

All of these books will continue to be destroyed by Borders or returned to publishers for trashing, millions of books a year.

So what about all the rest of the books, Borders?

As for the hundreds of thousands of books sitting boxed up right now in backrooms at the closing Waldenbooks stores, Borders says they're waiting to find recycling programs to take them, which may be true. Some employees suspect they’ll be dumpstered anyway. Borders has been so willing to mislead the public over their handling of this issue that it's hard to know what to believe:

http://donatenotdumpster.blogspot.com/2010/01/despite-our-pleas-borders-has-trashed.html

But even recycled, the books are still being discarded. What about re-use? If the books are being destroyed anyway, couldn't they ALL be donated? It's time to find a better way.

We repeat our call for Borders to work something out with a few big publishers so that some of these hundreds of thousands of books (even though most have been "stripped" of their front covers) could be donated instead.

Big publishers and book chains like Borders need to clean up their acts and reform the system that results in books being needlessly destroyed.

Borders to donate "non-returnable" goods but will keep trashing most unsold books

2010-01-21T16:05:00.000-08:00

Since employees first spoke out and started this campaign on Nov. 30, Borders has dragged its feet, refusing to stop trashing any of the books being destroyed while 182 Waldenbooks and Borders Express stores close down. They've repeatedly denied trashing books. Nearly two months later, with ten days to go before the store closings end, almost 10,000 people have stood up to tell Borders to show some leadership.

Our request was a simple one – for Borders to use this opportunity to take a stand against its own industry's wasteful practices, and pledge to work with publishers to find a way to donate the unsold books instead of destroying them.

Despite our pleas, hundreds of thousands of books have already been trashed.

Trashed books at Borders in California, 1/19. Photo by employee who sent this txt msg: "they dumpstered thousands last night - not recycled"

Borders may have been hoping to stonewall this issue until the store closings ended. But now that the story has spread widely in the blogosphere, on Facebook, and via Twitter, Borders has announced a gesture to donate some goods destined for the dumpsters to non-profits. It would have been PR suicide for them not to. And that's the right thing to do, it fulfills part of what their customers and book lovers everywhere who have signed onto this campaign have been calling for. We applaud Borders for taking a step in the right direction.

However, this announcement doesn't tell the whole story. Borders is only planning to donate "non-returnable" goods. These include many of the store-brand items that employees came forward this week to reveal had been regularly dumpstered:

http://donatenotdumpster.blogspot.com/2010/01/not-just-books-last-week-i-had-to.html

such as stationary, gift items, pens, pencils, blank journals, greeting cards, and art supplies. And also some books that for whatever reason can’t be returned to publishers.

But the vast majority of unsold mass-market books at Borders stores (like the ones in the above photo) are still going to be trashed. This gesture doesn't mean Borders has agreed to stop destroying books.

And that's a big problem. It's what we've been trying to raise awareness about since this campaign began by shining a light on the books being trashed while Borders closes 182 stores.

For a fuller picture of what Borders plans to donate, here's part of what was posted yesterday (1/20) on Bookmark, the company's internal website:

(Click to view larger sizes)

In the post, Borders offers several reasons to justify not moving to change its ways when it comes to trashing unsold books ("mass market returnables") that will continue to have their covers stripped and be disposed of. It also, ironically, points out how few books of this type remain in the closing Waldenbooks store locations after hundreds of thousands have already been trashed, since they are "working on a solve" in order to "get this limited amount of product to a recycler."

Kudos to Borders for now trying to start recycling the trashed books, because until employees spoke out last month, books went straight into dumpsters at all stores that lack recycling programs. Why recycling initiatives haven't been in place at all Borders stores for years is mystifying. But the books are still being discarded.

Borders is not the only book chain doing this, and big publishers are also to blame.

But as the ones carrying out the actual destruction of books in most cases, retailers have a responsibility as well as publishers to end this wasteful practice. And it's big chains like Borders who are the primary culprits.

We remain hopeful that this isn't Borders' only response to dealing with the problem. If so, they've come up short.

Despite our pleas, Borders has already trashed hundreds of thousands of books

2010-01-20T21:07:00.000-08:00

A heartfelt thanks to the nearly 10,000 book lovers who have signed onto this campaign since it launched Nov. 30. It's important to remember that whatever Borders decides to do at this point, despite our pleas for the company to find a better way, hundreds of thousands of books have already been trashed.

Borders has publicly stated many times over the past six weeks some variant of what was posted 1/15 on their website - "we will not be disposing of books as a result of the 182 Waldenbooks store closures." They've sent out similar replies via e-mail to 1000's of people who have contacted them, many of them supporters of this campaign.

Yet contrary to these denials, Borders has instructed employees to keep stripping covers from unsold books and sending them, along with the rest of the stripped books, back to their distribution centers in separate boxes. Not to be donated. To be disposed of away from the prying eyes of reporters or concerned customers who might find discarded books in store dumpsters:

http://donatenotdumpster.blogspot.com/2010/01/books-are-being-dumpstered-away-from.html

It's truly outrageous how Borders has misled the public regarding its actual response to this issue.

Last night, Borders spokesperson Mary Davis confirmed this when she posted the following to this page, admitting that as the store closings have proceeded over the past six weeks:

"we indeed instructed our store employees to strip the covers off mass market books that did not sell so they can be sent to publishers for credit."

So Borders has been trashing books as usual. The only question is, how many of the "mass market books that did not sell" has Borders "instructed store employees to strip the covers off" at each of the 182 stores Borders is closing? In other words, how many unsold books have been trashed?

Conservative estimates are in the hundreds of thousands - if as few as 600 books have been stripped at each of the closing stores (600 X 182 = 109,200). And thousands of books have been stripped at each store before being shipped back to distribution centers for disposal.

Those happen to be the same unsold books that concerned customers and book lovers everywhere have been pleading with Borders for six weeks to donate instead of trashing, ever since employees spoke out to alert the public that this was going on.

Big publishers and chains could save billions of dollars a year by cleaning up their act

2010-01-20T17:52:00.000-08:00

It's estimated the U.S. publishing and bookselling industry would actually SAVE MONEY in the neighborhood of BILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year if its outdated system of trashing unsold books was to change:

http://www.bookindustrybailout.ca/

Just because something's standard operating procedure doesn't mean it's the right thing to do, and doesn't mean people can't speak out to change it. Big publishers and book chains need to clean up their acts and reform the system that results in books being trashed.

Imagine the positive PR benefits for Borders if it was to take a stand against the waste, re-branding itself as a more responsible bookseller.

Environmentally conscious consumers and book lovers everywhere (and there are a lot of us out there) would reward the company with our book-buying dollars.

Not just books - last week I had to dumpster $15,000 worth of items in one Borders store

2010-01-18T07:51:00.000-08:00

Comment from "Quentin" on greenUPGRADER in response to 1-14-10 post "Stop Borders from Trashing Thousands of Unsold Books":

I work for Borders and there is a dumpster list that is published every month, sometimes more, that every store has to follow. You are required to locate all items on the list, scan them into the system and state the quantity of that item. You then are told to damage the item before throwing it in the dumpster.

A few months ago an email was sent out from the corporate office stating that no dumpster items were to be donated to charity. Stores must damage and throw out all merchandise.

This is not just the practice of closing stores, this is the practice of all Borders stores. Whether it be magazines, books, cd’s/dvd’s, gifts and stationary, nothing is allowed to be donated. We aren’t even allowed to keep dumpster items for use in the stores, like pens, tape, ext. Last week I had to dumpster close to $15,000 of gift and stationary items in one store. The majority of items I boxed up included pens, pencils, blank journals and art supplies, any of which I’m sure public schools are in need of.

Yet the corporate office can require us to ask every customer who is buying something if they would like to donate $8.00 to buy a bag of coffee to send to our troops. I don’t understand how they can expect our customers to donate their money when Borders as a company refuses to donate any of their merchandise to charity.

(January 18, 2010 at 7:51 am)

Retailers have a responsibility along with publishers to end dumpstering

2010-01-10T08:57:00.000-08:00

As the ones carrying out the actual destruction of books in most cases, retailers have a responsibility as well as publishers to end this wasteful practice. And it's big chains like Borders who are the primary culprits – independent bookstores order smarter, and return far fewer books. From a reader comment on last month's HuffPo story on this campaign:

"Retail chains are just as responsible for this distribution system.

The returnable distribution policy was devised by publishers to HELP bookstores stay in business decades ago. And it did help. What no one foresaw were these massive chains coming along. At first it appeared to be a good thing to publishers--more stores meant more books.

But then the CHAINS put pressure on the publishers to give bigger and bigger discounts--all returnable. The chains do not have to take any risk in over-ordering---they can return their screw ups. If a publisher refuses to sell books nonreturnable, the chains simply won't take them without even bigger discounts (and smaller orders), which publishers literally cannot afford."

Books are being dumpstered away from the prying eyes of HuffPost readers

2010-01-08T16:49:00.000-08:00

Anonymous Borders employee's post to iworkatborders LiveJournal blog on 2010-01-08 04:49 pm:

Yes, the practice of stripping & tossing MM's (mass-market books) is industry standard. It is also wasteful & inefficient, & with new inventory tracking capabilities, should be obsolete by now. So no, Borders isn't any more culpable than any other bookseller in this regard, & less so than the publishers.

Where Borders excels, however, is in making a bad situation worse. Now, in addition to stripping & returning the covers to the publisher for credit, we are shipping the guts of the book back to the DC (distribution center), at considerable expense, so that the books may be dumpstered away from the prying eyes of HuffPost readers. Extra payroll for packing already destroyed books, extra shipping charges, fuel use, etc. Sounds like a WIN to me!

I dumpstered 400 mass markets Monday night...

2010-01-08T11:02:00.000-08:00

Donate, Not Dumpster wrote on January 8 at 7:40am:

Shocked by the H&M trashgate story? Contrast H&M's quick reaction and public promise to donate unsold merchandise to that of Borders, who are still dragging their feet, refusing to pledge to donate any of the books being destroyed RIGHT NOW while the stores close.

(Borders employee) Meghan Arnold (West Virginia): Actually, we box up the stripped books and recycle them now. This is a very recent development. (January 8 at 11:02am)

Donate, Not Dumpster: Meghan, scroll down and read all posts from the past few days. Borders has instructed employees to keep stripping covers and sending them, along with the rest of the stripped books, back to the publishers in separate boxes. To be trashed as usual. So the company is still ordering employees to destroy books, but hiding their disposal from public view (where the books might be found by TV news crews or pesky grad students like Cynthia Magnus in store dumpsters).

Furthermore, they're putting a real burden on the already overworked employees of the closing Waldenbooks stores, creating enormous pressure on them to dumpster some books anyway to save time and labor ("I dumpstered 400 mass markets Monday night. Has anyone been boxing up and returning them, and how much space/time/materials does it eat up?" – 1/7 post from Borders employee on the iworkatborders LiveJournal blog).

http://community.livejournal.com/iworkatborders/577181.html?thread=12718237#t12718237

So much for Borders using this opportunity to take a stand against its own industry's wasteful practices, and working something out so that the unsold books could be donated instead. (January 8 at 11:23am)

Borders' actual plan revealed - hiding disposal of books from public view

2010-01-05T08:35:00.000-08:00

Donate, Not Dumspter wrote on January 5 at 8:35am:

Tim, thanks for your continued coverage of this story. Contrary to the latest e-mail you received from Borders spokesperson Mary Davis, if this 1/1 post from an employee on the iworkatborders LiveJournal blog is accurate (and it's echoed by other employees' comments in response to the post), Borders' actual plan for dealing with this issue is pretty astonishing:

http://community.livejournal.com/iworkatborders/573771.html

They've instructed employees to keep stripping covers and sending them, along with the rest of the stripped books, back to the publishers in separate boxes! Wow.

The company is still ordering their employees to destroy books, but hiding their disposal from public view (where the books might be found by TV news crews in store dumpsters), letting the publishers finish the dirty work. Furthermore, they're putting a real burden on the already overworked employees of the closing Waldenbooks stores, creating enormous pressure on them to dumpster some books anyway to save time and labor (again, read the employee comments on the above post).

Needless to say, this is not a development that inspires confidence in Borders. Until Borders stands up and publicly pledges to do the right thing, this campaign will continue.

Tim Baker: I will forward the link to Ms. Davis and see how she responds. Believe me - I never meant to imply that the situation was resolved. I simply wanted to extend Borders the courtesy of believing what they said. If it turns out to be untrue - it will only look that much worse for them. (January 5 at 8:37am)

Borders' reply to e-mail from librarian: We sincerely expect to have virtually no product left

2010-01-04T09:47:00.000-08:00

Sarah Moxley Kincade wrote on January 4, 2010 at 9:47am:

borders' reply to my email (i work at a public library and thought i'd use that for possible influence)

12/11/2009

Dear Parnell Memorial Library,

Thank you for your inquiry regarding Waldenbooks store stock. We agree that donating books is a worthy concept. However, we do not expect to have any remaining product to donate once we complete clearance sales at the 200 Waldenbooks stores that we plan to close in January 2010. To explain, we have retained the services of an outside firm that specializes in store closings/clearance sales. This firm has structured a process for these sales that involves discounting, moving product that is not selling to higher volume stores and consolidating inventory. Through this process, we sincerely expect to have virtually no product left our goal is to sell everything. Therefore, we do not expect to have product to donate or to dispose of.

I hope this addresses your concerns. Thank you again for writing. I hope this is helpful. If you should have any other questions or comments, please don't hesitate to let us know.

Sincerely, Layla Customer Care 100 Phoenix Dr Ann Arbor, MI 48108

Borders: any product that remains...will not be discarded

2010-01-01T12:11:00.000-08:00

Tim Baker wrote on January 1 at 12:11pm: I received a VERY ENCOURAGING e-mail from Borders yesterday. Check it out:

I received an e-mail from Ms. Mary Davis in the Corporate Affairs division of Borders Inc.

You may remember the last e-mail Ms. Davis sent to me in which she attempted to absolve Borders of any culpability in the whole "book dumpstering" fiasco.

In my opinion that e-mail was nothing less than corporate propaganda and many readers felt the same way.

This new e-mail though, like the New Year, seems to be full of promise and positive energy – see for yourself...

Hi again, Mr. Baker:

As a follow up to my (last) email, I want to provide you an update on where we stand with our product disposition practices. In my previous email, I stated that we are not disposing of any product as a result of closing approximately 180 Waldenbooks stores nationwide, and that we’ve retained a firm that specializes in closing/clearance sales and is highly successful at selling through virtually all inventory. I want to emphasize that any product that remains at stores that are closing will be transferred to other stores to be sold or will be donated to organizations in need, and will not be discarded.

Further, we have convened a cross-functional group of Borders Home Office employees who are looking at our product disposition practices in our remaining stores with the goal of finding a way to donate non returnable product to organizations in need and/or dispose of the product we do not donate in an environmentally friendly way. Concurrent with this, we are beginning the process of working with others within the industry to examine our collective product disposition practices.

I hope that you will consider our position for any future articles you write for Examiner.com and any posts you make on Facebook.

Thank you and Happy New Year.

Mary Davis

How Borders' PR has evolved since this campaign began Nov. 30

2009-12-26T07:17:00.000-08:00

Donate, Not Dumpster wrote on December 26, 2009 at 7:17am:

It's been interesting to watch Borders' PR evolve since this campaign began on Nov. 30. In her response to the below (12/24) post, Borders spokesperson Mary Davis makes it clear why Borders needs to stop trying to stonewall this issue until the store closings are over, and put out a press release pledging to work with publishers to find a way to donate the unsold books instead of destroying them.

"We will not be disposing of product as a result of the Waldenbooks store closures" is a noble sentiment, but it's hard to believe there's no possibility some books will remain unsold. It also glosses over the fact that many of the books they will be "returning" to publishers for credit will actually be stripped of covers and dumpstered. Why can't Borders use this opportunity to take a stand against its own industry's wasteful practices, and work something out so that they can be donated instead? The company needs to figure out a plan, issue a press release, and then we'll stand up and cheer Borders for doing the right thing.

It's also a contradiction of Davis' own words in response to a story about this campaign (published Dec. 16): "Please know until that team vets this issue and we decide appropriate next steps, we will hold off disposing whatever small amount of product that would normally be discarded."

http://image.examiner.com/x-32254-Orlando-Writing-Examiner~y2009m12d16-Borders-Responds-to-the-Dumpstering-Issue

It's a little like a hall of mirrors. The first responses from the company clearly stated "we do not expect to have product to donate or to dispose of" once clearance sales at the closing stores are over. Now that nearly 3,000 concerned book lovers are watching, they've admitted some books were going to be trashed all along!

In fact, the more detail Borders gives in their responses to folks who care about this issue, the more questions are raised as to whether they're committed to doing anything about it before the (now 180) Waldenbooks stores close.

After HuffPo ran a story on this campaign two weeks ago, Waldenbooks VP Pat Wynn said in response that Borders "will reconvene an existing team that we have on this issue to address it fully." Yet below, Davis describes the team this way:

"we've put together a group of individuals here at our corporate headquarters to take a look at our product disposal practices overall and see what can be done to benefit communities, while still meeting our business needs. It will take some time to examine this issue..."

This is corporate speak for, "we might do something, we might not. It depends on how big of a PR problem these pesky people who are trying to save the books become."

If Borders is serious about examining this issue to the benefit of communities, they can donate "whatever small amount of product that would normally be discarded" to local nonprofits. The company’s customers, employees, and book lovers everywhere will thank them for it.

Borders spokesperson Mary Davis: we will not be disposing of product

2009-12-24T11:39:00.000-08:00

Mary McCarthy Davis: Hi everyone, This is Mary Davis with Borders. I think I have written to some of you who have contacted the company over the last few weeks.

Just want to provide a clarification to what Justin says above. We are keeping open about 20 stores within our Waldenbooks Specialty Retail chain that were slated to close by the end of January. I think Justin's post may lead many to think that all of the stores that were slated to close are staying open, but again, that is not the case, we will keep open roughly 20.

As I have said to those who have emailed -- and we've posted here on this page -- that we will not be disposing of product as a result of the Waldenbooks store closures. We have hired an outside firm that specializes in clearance sales and we have put procedures in place that will allow us to sell through all product. In the meantime, however, we've put together a group of individuals here at our corporate headquarters to take a look at our product disposal practices overall and see what can be done to benefit communities, while still meeting our business needs. It will take some time to examine this issue, but suffice it to say that your emails and posts here on this page are not at all being ignored. I hope you have a nice holiday. (December 24, 2009 at 11:39am)

No need to worry about tossing out books!

2009-12-24T10:27:00.000-08:00

Justin B. Kelly: Just a little update in case people are unaware! Waldenbooks just found out they are staying open for business!!! :) so alas, no need to worry about tossing out books! (December 24, 2009 at 10:27am)

Borders throws away magazines, mass market books and Paperchase items that remain unsold

2009-12-21T06:30:00.000-08:00

Jim Forst: Borders throws away magazines, mass market books and Paperchase items that remain unsold. They accuse employees of trying to make a buck if they bring up the word "donation". This same company wants your sympathy saying "they can't cut costs anymore". This is proof that they have potential financial solutions but remain antiquated in their thinking about how to run a corporation in this modern day and age. Keep throwing away all this product and run yourselves into the ground. (December 21, 2009 at 6:30am)

Borders has got to be destroying the rainforest by now

2009-12-19T11:34:00.000-08:00

Emma Mangiapane: Borders has got to be destroying the rainforest by now with the thousands of boxes of stripped books and magazines that I had to watch being NOT EVEN RECYCLED but just thrown in the dumpster with all the other garbage, in the 4 years that I spent working for the company from which I recently departed from in disgust. They could make so much more of a difference in the world by donating those books that are stripped, instead of their regular scam to pad sales by holding book drives that require customers to purchase new books in the store. (December 19, 2009 at 11:34am)

Response from Borders: We do not expect to have any product left from closing the stores

2009-12-15T21:06:00.000-08:00

Nicole McClure (Topeka High) wrote on December 15, 2009 at 9:06pm:

I received this email:

Ms. McClure --

Thank you for writing. I want to assure you (and your students) that contrary to what has been reported on Facebook and elsewhere, we will not be disposing of books as a result of the Waldenbooks store closure process. Our company has retained an outside firm that specializes in conducting store closing/clearance sales. This firm is highly successful at selling through virtually all inventory.

For all books that cannot be sold elsewhere in our chain or returned to the publishers for credit, the company will engage in a process where product is strategically merchandised and priced for sale. If product is not selling quickly at lower volume stores, it will be shipped to higher volume stores where demand is higher and it will be sold. Inventory is continually consolidated throughout the stores that are closing and the stores are re-merchandised to continue to attract buyers. So, the fact is, we do not expect to have any product left from closing the stores. However, please know that if there is a small amount of product left over after these other measures I just explained have been exhausted, we will hold back on disposing of that product until an existing team we have on this issue is reconvened and this issue is fully examined.

Beyond the approximately 200 Waldenbooks stores that are closing, we have over time had programs where unsold books that were appropriate to be donated to schools, etc., have been provided to assist community organizations. We also hold several book drives during the year in all of our stores where we select specific charities to receive books on a local basis and have facilitated the donation of thousands and thousands of books. I hope this addresses your concerns.

Thank you,
Mary Davis
Manager, Corporate Affairs for Borders Group

Borders manager: the dumpstered merch is not appropriate for schools

2009-12-13T13:40:00.000-08:00

Chris Walker: Borders, please donate your books to local schools and libraries instead of dumping them. (December 13, 2009 at 1:40pm)

(Borders Store Manager) Julie Michalski: generally the only things that get dumped are out of date travel guides and trashy romance novels with a few mysteries and sci/fi fiction....none of which is appropriate for a school library. (December 14, 2009 at 3:40pm)

Chris Walker: Can you please direct me to a press release, or some kind of evidence that shows what you're stating is true? (December 14, 2009 at 8:31pm)

(Borders Store Manager) Julie Michalski: What kind of press release would you like? Stating WHAT is true...that the dumpstered merch is not appropriate for schools? Ask any store manager. (December 14, 2009 at 9:01pm)

Waldenbooks VP Pat Wynn: We will not be disposing of books

2009-12-12T12:50:00.000-08:00

Pat Wynn: I’m the Vice President of Waldenbooks and I want to assure you that contrary to what has been reported, we will not be disposing of books as a result of the Waldenbooks store closure process. Our company has retained an outside firm that specializes in conducting store closing/clearance sales. This firm is highly successful at selling through virtually all inventory.

For all books that cannot be sold elsewhere in our chain or returned to the publishers for credit, the company will engage in a process where product is strategically merchandised and priced for sale. If product is not selling quickly at lower volume stores, it will be shipped to higher volume stores where demand is higher and it will be sold. Inventory is continually consolidated throughout the stores that are closing and the stores are re-merchandised to continue to attract buyers. So, the fact is, we do not expect to have any product left from closing the stores. (December 12, 2009 at 12:50pm)

Donate, Not Dumpster: Hi Pat, thanks for taking the time to weigh in. Nearly two weeks after Waldenbooks employees helped start this campaign, it's nice to get a response. It's unfortunate that your fellow Borders Group executive, CFO Mark Bierley, didn’t feel customers' concerns on this issue were important enough to read before deleting.

It’s great to hear you say that you "will not be disposing of books as a result of the Waldenbooks store closure process." In that case, why were Waldenbooks employees in management positions told that unsold inventory would be dumpstered (once liquidation sales end) as part of the company's plans for the store closings? And why did they feel so certain Borders would follow through with these plans that they were willing to risk their own jobs through a campaign to alert the public?

Your comments also seem to minimize how prevalent the practice of dumpstering books is at Waldenbooks and Borders stores, as former employees have revealed.

"We do not expect to have any product left from closing the stores" is a noble sentiment, but it's hard to believe there's no possibility some books will remain unsold. It also glosses over the fact that many of the books you will be "returning" to publishers for credit will actually be stripped of covers and dumpstered. Why can't you use this opportunity to take a stand against your own industry's wasteful practices, and work something out so that they can be donated instead? Figure out a plan, issue a press release, and then we'll stand up and cheer Borders for doing the right thing. (December 12, 2009 at 2:07pm)

Pat Wynn: Beyond the approximately 200 Waldenbooks stores that are closing, we have over time had programs where unsold books appropriate to be donated to schools, etc., have been donated to assist community organizations. We also hold book drives during the year in all of our stores where we select specific charities to receive books on a local basis and have facilitated the donation of thousands of books. Like all book retailers we have also disposed of some books when they couldn’t be sold—these are primarily mass market paperback books that are generally not durable enough to be donated to a library, for example. We do our best to dispose of as little product as possible— as a retailer we’d rather sell it, of course— yet just to be sure we are doing the right thing, we will reconvene an existing team that we have on this issue to address it fully. Thank you. (December 12, 2009 at 12:50pm)

Donate, Not Dumpster: Pat, it's also great to know that you "will reconvene an existing team that we have on this issue to address it fully." We are simply calling for Borders to make a public statement pledging to work with distributors and publishers to find a way to donate any unsold books left over (in the event there are any, regardless of your commendable intentions to sell everything) instead of destroying them.

If publishers plan to destroy books you would be returning for credit, use this opportunity to take a stand against your own industry's wasteful practices, and work something out so that they can be donated instead. Your employees, customers, and book lovers everywhere will thank you for it. (December 12, 2009 at 2:09pm)

The publishing industry's whole system needs to be reorganized

2009-12-11T17:52:00.000-08:00

Damon Brown: They cannot just give the books away and if they throw them in the dumpster intact someone will pick them out and sell them on their own creating more loss of income. The industry credit back programs usually require the front cover(with publishing info) of paperbacks and softcovers to be ripped off and sent back to the distributor. The interior is thrown away or recycled. Industry practices need to be changed but calling Waldenbooks alone will not do it. The whole system needs to be rethought, reorganized, and re-implemented. (December 11, 2009 at 5:52pm)

Donate, Not Dumpster: Damon, you're right that the publishing industry's "whole system needs to be rethought, reorganized, and re-implemented." See this post for a more detailed look at the history of book returns and why this irrational system got set up in the first place:

http://thelatestoutrage.blogspot.com/2009/12/pulping-is-publishing-industrys-dirty.html

But shining a light on the 200 Waldenbooks that are closing and spreading the word that many unsold books may be needlessly destroyed in the process is a very useful way to raise awareness about these wasteful business practices that have largely been kept hidden from the public. (December 11, 2009 at 6:44pm)

Pulping is the Publishing Industry's Dirty Little Secret

2009-12-11T07:18:00.000-08:00

THE LATEST OUTRAGE, 12-11-09

In time for the holiday season, while you're perusing best-of-lists to find that perfect book gift for a loved one, here's something the publishing industry doesn't want you to know. By shipping books to retailers on consignment terms, then requiring the return or destruction of unsold merchandise, the publishing industry operates unlike all other manufacturers. An estimated 30 TO 40 PERCENT of books are returned by bookstores annually. Between 65 and 95 percent of returned books are pulped - destroyed by publishers.

Clearly, the publishing indutry overprints on a massive scale because of returns. And the environmental impact of this pulping waste is staggering. The Canadian website Book Industry Bailout has calculated the shocking scale of trees cut and greenhouse gas emissions due to overprinting by the publishing industry in Canada. In the U.S., the environmental destruction is multiplied at least tenfold, since our publishing industry is 15 to 20 times larger.

Most big publishers would like to keep this a secret, refusing to release hard figures on their returns. Conscientious small publishers are thankfully not so quiet on the subject, especially those who have moved to publish-on-demand business models.

Reporting in the Wall Street Journal in 2005, Jeffrey Trachtenberg called returns "the dark side of the book world," and quoted Barnes & Noble CEO Steve Riggio as saying, "We'd like to see (returns) discontinued. Any rational business person looking at this practice would think the industry has gone mad." Last year, Borders executive VP Robert P. Gruen told the New York Times that "We generally support the idea of looking at potential solutions to a return system that is not working well for the industry as a whole."

According to Book Industry Bailout, the practice of publishers providing books to retailers on returnable terms only dates to the 1930s, and "began as a temporary sales gimmick by a desperate New York publisher." But the concept spread as booksellers demanded the same favorable terms from other publishers, and eventually became standard – "handicapping an entire industry for the next seven decades in an unfortunate practice that has wasted literally billions of dollars worldwide."

Nearly all non-book retailers purchase products from manufacturers or distributors at 50% or less of their retail value, mark them up, then discount the items until they sell. They can't return unsold items.

The business of selling books turns this normal practice on its head by allowing book returns of unsold books to publishers. Yet it costs money to ship returned books back. Thus was born the practice of stripping covers from books, only sending back the covers, and book stores themselves destroying the remainder of the unsold books.

Dumpstered books behind a B. Dalton Bookseller store in Ohio, 2003

Independent book stores have far fewer returns than chains, with sell-through rates estimated at 80 percent. This suggests that smarter buying practices by stores reduce returns, and further demonstrates why overprinting is so unnecessary.

Many chain book stores do the publishers' dirty work of pulping the books for them – booksellers call it dumpstering. And when financially struggling book chains shut stores, as is happening right now with Borders closing 200 Waldenbooks locations, there is enormous pressure for management to take the cheapest way out and order employees to simply dumpster unsold books.

(By ERIK OSE)

I emailed all the folks and Borders' CFO deleted it without reading

2009-12-10T23:35:00.000-08:00

Denise C. (Georgia): I emailed all the folks and the CFO deleted it without reading it. I sent a read request with it. I re-emailed him with a different subject line....we'll see if that works!!!! (December 10, 2009 at 11:35pm)

Giovanni Gallucci: CFO (Mark Bierley) deleted it without reading it. Classy. (December 11, 2009 at 3:59pm)

Borders' response: We do not expect to have product to donate or to dispose of

2009-12-10T03:40:00.000-08:00

Xephyr Inkpen (RISD) wrote on December 10, 2009 at 3:40am:

12/8/2009

Dear Xephyr Zanzabar,

Thank you for your inquiry regarding Waldenbooks store stock.

We agree that donating books is a worthy concept. However, we do not expect to have any remaining product to donate once we complete clearance sales at the 200 Waldenbooks stores that we plan to close in January 2010. To explain, we have retained the services of an outside firm that specializes in store closings/clearance sales. This firm has structured a process for these sales that involves discounting, moving product that is not selling to higher volume stores and consolidating inventory. Through this process, we sincerely expect to have virtually no product left - our goal is to sell everything. Therefore, we do not expect to have product to donate or to dispose of.

I hope this addresses your concerns. Thank you again for writing.

Sincerely,

Blanche
Borders Customer Care
www.Borders.com

Donate, Not Dumpster: Xephyr, thanks for your support and for caring enough to e-mail Borders. Regardless of the canned response you received, until Borders makes a public statement pledging to work with their distributors to find a way to donate any unsold books, and promising no books will be destroyed, this issue will remain unresolved. We have reliable info from employees that everything unsold will be dumpstered.

"We sincerely expect to have no product left" is noble corporate-speak, but the reality is that there will be unsold books after 200 stores shut their doors. And the cheapest, easiest option for Borders is to dumpster them. If Borders wants this effort to go away, they can issue a public statement promising no unsold books will be destroyed as a result of the Waldenbooks closings. (December 10, 2009 at 9:48am)

Borders has enough clout with publishers to work something out

2009-12-09T00:49:00.000-08:00

Debra Penna-Fredericks: I worked at a BDalton years ago. I know from that experience that Borders does not have a choice. It is the publishers who require the bookstore to dump the books. Borders is legally obligated to dump the books. If you wish to make a difference, make your concerns known to the publishers. (December 9, 2009 at 12:49am)

Donate, Not Dumpster: Debra, what's interesting is that if you read the responses below that Borders has sent back to all who have contacted them so far, not once have they made this claim.

As a nationwide chain bookseller with nearly a thousand stores (including the 200 soon-to-be-closed Waldenbooks locations), they have enough clout with publishers and distributors to find a way to work something out so that no books need be dumpstered.
(December 9, 2009 at 8:51am)

How many customers and citizens know the truth?

2009-12-08T23:45:00.000-08:00

Gary Peters: I truly hope this will make a difference, but sadly, this is just the way of retail. I was an asst. manager at Spirit Halloween this year, which is owned by Spencer Gifts. At the end of the season, there was list of items which the comapny was discontinuing for whatever reason. So rather than donating all these perfectly good costumes and accressories to some noble cause that would hook up the less fortunate who surely must also enjoy Halloween, we had to DESTROY every single piece so that when we threw it all in the dumpster, no one scored any cool finds. Of course the idea of destroying books for the same reason is far more heart-breaking to me. (December 8, 2009 at 11:45pm)

Donate, Not Dumpster: One of the ways this effort is already making a difference is by spreading awareness of how the wasteful practice of dumpstering happens every day in large chain stores. You're aware of it because you were in a management position and saw what was going on first hand. How many customers and citizens know the truth? If we are serious about living green and consuming responsibly, we need to pressure companies like Borders to change their ways. Please suggest this page to more friends, and thanks for caring! (December 9, 2009 at 9:03am)

I used to work at a Waldenbooks and we would trash books like every two weeks

2009-12-07T22:57:00.000-08:00

Brooke Bennett (Little Rock, AR): I used to work at a Waldenbooks and we would trash books, tons of books, like every two weeks. It just killed me. (December 7, 2009 at 10:57pm)

Until Borders makes a public statement this issue will remain unresolved

2009-12-03T11:23:00.000-08:00

Annemarie Boswell: I just got off the phone with Borders corporate office and was told that they will be returning any books they can to the distributor. Some books will not be returnable and those distributors often require the destruction of the books, usually with the return of the front cover as verification of said destruction. I told them about this Facebook page and asked that they work with the distributors of such books to get them into the hands of the needy such as schools, shelters and soldiers. I was told that they would do all they could to see that accomplished. I made it clear to them that as a long time customer I would be shopping elsewhere should they destroy so many books in such an economy. (December 3, 2009 at 11:23am)

Donate, Not Dumpster: Annemarie, thanks for your support and for caring enough to call Borders. Regardless of what you were told, until Borders makes a public statement pledging to work with their distributors to find a way to donate instead of destroying the unsold books, this issue will remain unresolved. (December 3, 2009 at 11:45am)

Annemarie Boswell: I agree. That's why everyone needs to contact them and let them know how they feel. (December 3, 2009 at 11:59am)

Please do not throw away books - letter to Borders from Xephyr Inkpen

2009-12-03T04:03:00.000-08:00

Hello all -

First I wanted to say I am a fan of Borders. I love the atmosphere and availability of books. The staff have always been nice and helpful. It is one of my holiday shopping spots. So thank you for perpetuating reading.

But I also wanted to say I am shocked to hear the practice of dumpstering books. I have worked for a small local bookstore before, I grew up exploring the wonderful library in my hometown and I had two lovely parents who read to me as a child. The thought of throwing away books is horrifying. I understand there is such a thing a profits & margins, but throwing away books is an atrocious way to keep supply down.

Please reconsider this practice. Just as Carnegie changed America by building libraries, Borders too could be known as great philanthropists. Donate to libraries, donate to soldiers abroad, donate to local schools. But please, please do not throw away books. That is like throwing away knowledge, and an educated customer base is one that will shop at your store.

As a child if my favorite library book had a sticker inside that said 'donated by Borders' I would be more likely to look fondly upon the bookstore when I grew up. Please consider this as an investment in the future of both our country and your company.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely~

Xephyr Inkpen

(December 3, 2009 at 4:03am)

An Industry 'Gone Mad': Quest for Best Seller Creates a Pileup Of Returned Books

2005-06-03T00:01:00.001-07:00

WALL STREET JOURNAL, 6-3-05; Page A1

There are two Time Warner Book Group warehouses on the outskirts of Indianapolis. Although separated by only an eighth of a mile, between them stretches a gulf of disappointment.

One building, dubbed the "happy warehouse" by one publishing executive, is filled with about 60 million hardcover books and paperbacks waiting to be distributed to stores across the U.S. The other is the "sad" warehouse. Piled high are some of the 20 million books returned every year by retailers. Many will be resold at cut-rate prices. Two million to four million will have their spines sliced off before being piled into a recycling machine the size of a Dumpster, chewed up and spat out as bales of paper.

Returns are the dark side of the book world, marking not only failed expectations, but the crippling inefficiencies of an antiquated business. It's a problem that's only getting worse. The industry's current economic model pushes publishers to generate a small number of blockbuster hits. But picking winners is a quixotic enterprise, and as publishers ship an ever-increasing number of books to stores, hoping to hit the jackpot every time, stores are sending an ever-increasing number back.

In 2003, 34% of adult hardcover books were returned to publishers, compared with 28% in 1993, says Albert N. Greco, a professor at the Fordham Graduate School of Business and a leading industry statistician. That's more than one in three adult hardcover books that publishers edit, print, distribute and market. According to the Association of American Publishers, those returns in 2004 had a wholesale value of $801 million, up from $743 million in the prior year. It is a system nobody likes, but no one knows how to change, even though the country's largest book retailer says it would like to try.

In most other industries, manufacturers don't have to take back products that don't sell. If a department store can't move a line of clothing, for example, the items are pitched at lower prices. The book industry, by contrast, has been saddled with this system since the Depression, when publishers told struggling bookstores they could return unwanted books as long as they kept ordering new titles. Returns also persist in the DVD and music businesses, and to a lesser extent in videogames.

The reverse tidal flood of books hurts every aspect of the business, one already struggling with weak sales. Authors don't get royalties on unsold books. Publishers sell returned copies at distressed prices after paying to truck them thousands of miles around the country. Books that can't be sold at any price are pulped for a total loss. "The most expensive thing we do in our warehouse is process returns," says John Sargent, chief executive officer of Germany's Holtzbrinck Publishers, which owns such imprints as Farrar, Straus & Giroux; Henry Holt and St. Martin's Press.

Worst of all, the increasing rate of returns has helped ignite a destructive cycle. So many books come back that publishers say they have raised prices to compensate for the anticipated lost revenue. That in turn makes many books harder to sell, creating more returns. Between 1985 and 2003, hardcover book prices rose 118%, far outpacing the 71% gain in the Consumer Price Index during that period, according to Fordham's Mr. Greco.

Last October, Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Books published Nicholas Perricone's "The Perricone Promise," a book about staying young. It sold 525,000 copies, hit the major best-seller lists and was one of the publisher's hot books of 2004. Retailers sold about 70% of the book's print run. That's a standard performance for such a title but it means that 225,000 copies remain unsold. Publishers and retailers will pay to truck these copies thousands of miles around the U.S. -- without once selling them to a consumer.

Time Warner initially shipped a number of copies 2,100 miles from its "happy" warehouse in Lebanon, Ind., to a Barnes & Noble Inc. bookstore in Marina Del Rey, Calif. Those that remained unsold were taken into a back room, packed in a box -- which was picked up by a trucking company -- and dispatched on a 2,800-mile journey to Barnes & Noble's national distribution center in Jamesburg, N.J.

Barnes & Noble processed the books and sent them a further 700 miles back to Lebanon, where this time they went to the "sad" Time Warner warehouse. There they remain. After 12 to 18 months, these copies will likely be sold to companies that specialize in bargain books.

Time Warner, for example, sells many returns to Strictly-By-The-Book Inc., which has a warehouse in Bridgewater, Mass., about 1,000 miles away. Barnes & Noble says it plans to buy bargain-priced copies of "The Perricone Promise," which it will eventually sell for as much as $7.98 instead of its original list price of $27.95. That means they will probably wend their way back to Marina Del Rey, via Bridgewater and Jamesburg, for an additional 3,000 miles on the road.

The escalation of the returns problem began when book chains became superstores and expanded the size of their orders. In one decade, between 1989 and 1999, Barnes & Noble went to 542 from 23 superstores and Borders Group Inc. to 300 from seven. At the same time, discounters such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s Sam's Club and Costco Wholesale Corp. emerged as book powerhouses. These stores sell a few hundred titles in massive numbers and constantly replace slow-selling books with newer titles.

This kind of retailing has led to an ever-shortening shelf life for bestsellers. Most stores promote new books for only one or two weeks. Authors who might have remained on the best-seller list 10 to 12 weeks a decade ago now often stay only six to eight weeks. This phenomenon has been exacerbated by publishers themselves, who are publishing ever more books each year in search of hits. That pushes other titles off the shelves more quickly.

Because potential bestsellers have only a short time to get established, publishers say they need towering stacks at the front of stores to ensure their titles get noticed and to make sure they don't miss any sales. The principle is similar to movie studios wanting to get their films in as many theaters as possible on opening weekend. "You build authors by the weight of copies," says Laurence Kirshbaum, CEO of Time Warner's book group.

This means printing ever larger quantities. A publisher who wants to supply an average of 25 copies to the 690 superstores that Barnes & Noble is expected to operate by year end -- typical for a book with best-seller potential -- will have to ship 17,250 copies to that company alone. In 1985, Warner Books printed a total of 35,000 copies for "Word of Honor," the first Nelson DeMille novel it published. Today, Warner Books typically prints 800,000 copies of a new DeMille offering.

The ultimate fantasy: Finding a book like Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code," which now has more than 10 million hardcovers in print in the U.S.

Even midsize publishers sometimes reach for the brass ring. In April 2004, Avalon Publishing Group Inc. issued, "The Politics of Truth: Inside the Lies that Led to War and Betrayed My Wife's CIA Identity," by former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson. At the time, books about politics were selling well, and Avalon, eager to deliver as many copies as quickly as possible, printed 100,000. Shortly before the publication date of April 30, it went back to the presses for an additional 25,000.

Just as the book was hitting the best-seller lists, public attention switched to allegations of abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison. Although "The Politics of Truth" enjoyed good sales, Charles Winton, Avalon's CEO, says he's now sitting on 60,000 copies, including many that have been returned. The second printing cost at least $60,000, he says, none of which he has yet recouped. Mr. Winton says he had to gamble: "You sell a lot of books, but there's also a lot of waste."

At the beginning of each month, Brian Wakeley, who heads up the returns department at Powell's Books in Portland, Ore., runs a computerized inventory review to determine which books haven't sold in the last six months. After deciding which titles need to be shipped back, Mr. Wakeley contacts all eight stores in Powell's chain and asks them to send their copies to the retailer's distribution center in Portland.

There, employees manually scrape off the Powell's barcode label on the back of each book. The staffers, who work in shifts, use a plastic scraper that looks like an inverted spoon. The work is so boring that "some people just can't stand it," says Mr. Wakeley, who listens to books on tape as he works.

Retailers, who pay millions in freight and handling for returns every year, have mixed feelings for the present system. "There is no doubt it gives us too much confidence," says Gregory P. Josefowicz, CEO of Borders Group, the nation's second-largest book retailer. "Without that umbrella, we might be more analytical" in what books are bought.

Steve Riggio, CEO of Barnes & Noble, the U.S.'s No. 1 bookstore chain, says he has a solution: He wants Barnes & Noble to start marking down books and selling them on the spot. Customers would relish the bargains, publishers would generate more sales and costs would be cut. He says eliminating returns would "revolutionize the book business and revitalize the book business."

But Mr. Riggio says he can't implement the change by himself, since it's ultimately a decision for publishers. "We'd like to see this practice discontinued," he says. "Any rational business person looking at this practice would think the industry has gone mad."

Though they stand to benefit, many publishers are leery of change. Cynthia Sherry, associate publisher of the Chicago Review Press, a small independent house, says that without the return option, bookstores won't take chances on the quirky, edgy books her company publishes.

Others worry that readers will learn to wait until books are cheaper. "You don't want to create a discount atmosphere," says Robert Miller, president of Walt Disney Co.'s Hyperion book-publishing unit.

Years ago, one leading publisher tried to change the system but nobody followed his lead. In 1980, the late William Jovanovich, chairman of what was then Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc., announced he was ending returns. Instead, he offered retailers larger discounts. Buyers responded by cutting their orders. Mr. Jovanovich reversed course a year later when retailers demanded even deeper discounts on the grounds that buying books on a nonreturnable basis was still too risky.

Thomas F. Burke, founder and president of Pomegranate Communications Inc., a small book and calendar publisher, says he's willing to try again. The Petaluma, Calif., company decided late last year it won't accept returns anymore. "The system doesn't work," he says. "I'm looking forward to having a clean warehouse."

Still, Mr. Burke is doubtful his decision will prompt changes in the business. "It won't create a ripple," he says.

(By JEFFREY A. TRACHTENBERG)