Powell's City of Books

From Free net encyclopedia

(Redirected from Powells.com)

Image:Powellscityofbooks.jpgPowell's Books is a chain of bookstores in the Portland metropolitan area with origins (and a "sister store") in Chicago, Illinois. Powell's headquarters location, Powell's City of Books, is the largest independent bookstore in the United States.

Powell's City of Books is located on the edge of downtown and the Pearl District, occupying a full city block between NW 10th and 11th Avenues and Burnside and Couch Streets. It is open 365 days a year, and contains over 68,000 ft² of floor space.

The inventory for its retail and online sales is over four million new, used, rare, and out-of-print books.Template:Ref; since 2005 it has also offered DVDs, with an inventory of over 40,000, available online only. At its retail stores, it follows the somewhat unusual practice of shelving new and used books side-by-side. It buys thousands of used books a day in order to keep its shelves well-stocked.

Powell's has had an Internet presence dating back to email and ftp-based access for its technical bookstore.Template:Ref Their website was established in 1994, before Amazon.com.

The company was founded by Walter Powell, whose son, Michael Powell, had started a bookstore in Chicago, Illinois which specializes in used, rare, and discounted books, primarily academic and scholarly. Michael Powell soon joined his father in Portland, leading the expansion business to what it is today.

Powell's is a member of the American Booksellers Association.

[edit]

List of locations

In addition to its "City of Books" location, Powell's Books also has several smaller stores:

a technical bookstore a few blocks east of the main store;
a general bookstore in Beaverton;
another in Portland's Hawthorne neighborhood
a store with cooking and gardening materials two spaces east of the Hawthorne store; and
two stores at the Portland International Airport.

[edit]

Other information

Powell's is a one-time sponsor of Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac. As of April 2004, Powell's is part of Portland's wireless community, courtesy of Personal Telco.Template:Ref

Some of the store's actions have made big news in Portland. When the Oregon Citizens Alliance qualified Ballot Measure 9 in 1992, an anti-gay rights measure, the bookstore actively campaigned against the measure. A few years later, a prolonged labor dispute between Powell's employees and Michael Powell over unionizing the employees tarnished Michael Powell's reputation as a champion of liberal causes.Template:Ref

Fans of the bookstore include Chuck Palahniuk, Patty Smith, Tony Hawk Template:Ref, Ursula Le Guin Template:Ref, Ralph Nader Template:Ref, and Susan Sontag.Template:Ref

[edit]